MANILA
\nThousands of euphoric Filipinos jammed the streets of Manila on Wednesday in a grand homecoming parade for the country\u2019s Olympians led by Paris Olympics double gold winner Carlos Yulo.
\nYulo\u2019s victories in the men\u2019s floor exercise and vault events earlier this month were the largest victory ever by an athlete from the Philippines since the country joined the Games a century ago. Two Filipino boxers, Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas, won bronze medals in women\u2019s boxing in Paris.
\nAdoring fans were shrieking and waving little flags on Wednesday to greet Yulo and the Philippines\u2019 Olympics contingent as they rode on a float adorned with the five Olympic rings as a backdrop, cruising through major Manila streets.
\n\u201cI\u2019m here to welcome Carlos and our other athletes. They deserve a warm welcome,\u201d Manila resident Berns Tolentino told Arab News.
\n\u201cCongratulations, Carlos \u2026 What\u2019s important is you made us Filipinos proud.\u201d
\nLigaya Sardiya, another Manila resident, said she was very happy to see the Filipino athletes who performed at the Olympics.
\n\u201cIt is very important for me to be here, to see them, because I am a Filipino, so I want to see all those athletes who made us proud as a nation,\u201d she told Arab News.
\nWith his medals hanging proudly on his neck, a beaming Yulo flashed victory signs, took selfies and signed T-shirts that were later thrown back to the street crowd. The parade ended with Yulo and his fellow Olympians addressing thousands of people gathered at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
\n\u201cThis is overwhelming \u2026 We will do better in the next competition, and rest assured that we will get more medals. I thank all the people who support us,\u201d Yulo said.
\nThe 24-year-old is the first Filipino and Southeast Asian to win two golds at a single Olympics, making the Philippines the best-performing country in the region for this year\u2019s Games, followed by Indonesia.
\nAcross the archipelago nation, other government offices, leading Philippine companies and local brands have showered Yulo with various pledges of gifts.
\nThese include a fully furnished three-bedroom condominium in one of Manila\u2019s posh neighborhoods, free ramen for a lifetime and also free consultations from a gastroenterologist after he turns 45.
\nOn Tuesday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. gave the 22 Filipino athletes presidential citations and 1 million pesos ($17,500) each, while Yulo was awarded the Presidential Medal of Merit and given 20 million pesos.
\n\u201cYour performance was the result of \u2026 (your) sacrifice of yourself, your coaches, trainers, nutritionists, and especially your families \u2026 You made the Philippines famous all over the world,\u201d Marcos said.
\nMarcos acknowledged how the Philippines currently had \u201cno formal structure\u201d to help its athletes, a longstanding concern in the country\u2019s sports development.
\n\u201cThat\u2019s what we are going to establish now,\u201d Marcos said. \u201cI want to be part of the development of sports in the Philippines. We have been left behind.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MANILA Thousands of euphoric Filipinos jammed the streets of Manila on Wednesday in a grand homecoming parade for the country\u2019s Olympians led by Paris Olympics double gold winner Carlos Yulo. Yulo\u2019s victories in the men\u2019s floor exercise and vault events earlier this month were the largest victory ever by an athlete from the Philippines since […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":424788,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-424957","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n