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SEA Games: Indonesian gymnast Agus shines in golden swansong
Gymnast Agus Prayoko is among the athletes who have bade farewell at the Philippines Games with the 30-year-old feeling it was time to move on after 24 years in the sport.
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: Indonesian gold medalist gymnast Agus Prayoko is flanked by silver medalist Yulo Carlos Edriel of the Philippines (left) and bronze medalist Le Thanh Tung of Vietnam on the podium after the final round of the men’s vault in the Southeast Asia (SEA) Games in Manila on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2019. (Reuters/Eloisa Lopez)
F
or a number of athletes, the 30th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in the Philippines will be the final time they showcase their talents in the sporting arena.
Gymnast Agus Prayoko is among the athletes who have bade farewell at the Philippines Games with the 30-year-old feeling it was time to move on after 24 years in the sport.
The Philippine Games was Agus’ fifth appearance at the regional event after making his debut at the 2007 SEA Games in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. The 2019 Games will no doubt hold a special place in his heart, with the veteran ending his SEA Games career on a high, bagging his first and final gold medal in the vault at the biennial event.
Agus drew on all his experience during Wednesday’s final to silence the crowd at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum that was fully behind home favorite Carlos Edriel Yulo.
The crowd chanted, “Yulo, Yulo!”, when the Filipino gymnast shot to the top of the standings with a score of 13.7.
Agus was the last to perform. As he stood at the top of the run, he looked determined, the crowd’s chants doing nothing to break his concentration. Yoko’s breathtaking performance had not fazed him.
Yulo has been a star of the 2019 Games, winning two gold and five silver medals in artistic gymnastics. He rose to prominence after winning gold in the floor exercise at the Gymnastics World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, in October, securing his spot in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He is just the second Filipino to qualify for the 2020 Summer Games.
