Paris Olympic gold medalist Carlos Yulo visits the ABS-CBN Newsroom at the ABS-CBN Compound in Quezon City on August 27, 2024.  Gigie Cruz, ABS-CBN News/File

MANILA -- Filipino gymnast Carlos Yulo is the overwhelming choice for Athlete of the Year honors when the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) holds its Awards Night on January 27 at the Manila Hotel.

The pint-sized dynamo made the debate moot and academic with his brilliant performances in the 2025 Summer Games in Paris, where he made history as the first Filipino athlete to win two medals in a single Olympics. 

The 24-year-old Yulo scored the rare double gold by topping the men's floor exercise and vault, leading the Philippines to a feat the country has never done before in the annals of the quadrennial showcase.

READ: How Carlos Yulo was built into an Olympic champion

He will be the first gymnast since young Pia Adelle Reyes in 1997 to be recognized as Athlete of the Year by the country's oldest media organization in its traditional gala night backed by San Miguel Corporation and co-presented by ArenaPlus, Cignal, and MediaQuest.

Aside from the Athlete of the Year, several awards are also lined up during the formal presentation where the Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, PLDT/Smart, Senator Bong Go, and Januarius Holdings serve as major sponsors and with support from the PBA, PVL, 1-Pacman Party List, AcroCity, Rain or Shine, and Akari.

The NSA of the Year, Major Awardees in other sports, President's Award, Executive of the Year, Citations, Tony Siddayao Awards, as well as the Hall of Fame and Special Recognition to Filipino Olympians – the Paris Olympics and Paralympics included – will be handed out in the event recognizing the best in Philippines sports for the year 2024.

"From a great Olympic performance to an even greater Olympic show, and from one big breakthrough to an even bigger breakthrough – thanks to Carlos Yulo whose giant feat we will celebrate in handling him our highest accolades," said PSA President Nelson Beltran, sports editor of The Philippine Star, of recognizing the Filipino gymnast with the highest individual honor by the country's sportswriting community.

Yulo followed in the footsteps of Filipina weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz, who ended the country's long wait for gold when she ruled the women's 55kg class in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

Ironically, it was in the same Japanese capital where the gymnast from Leveriza, Manila had his first taste of Olympic competitions, eventually only qualifying in the men's vault final and falling short of a podium finish.

READ: Carlos Yulo is crowned, and more of the top sports stories of 2024

Four years later, Yulo returned with a vengeance. 

After a disappointing finish in the floor exercise in the Tokyo Games, Yulo emerged on top of his pet event by compiling a scoring total of 15.000 points, beating reigning champion Artem Dolgopyat of Israel (14.966) for the Philippines' first gold in Paris.

The euphoria of becoming the first Filipino gymnast to win an Olympic gold has yet to die down when Yulo added another mint to his collection by ruling the men's vault final with a 15.116 total over Arthur Davtyan of Armenia (14.966).

With his unprecedented feat, Yulo wrote himself into the history books and put his name on the short list of the greatest Filipino athletes of all time. 

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