MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Filipino gymnast Carlos Yulo, who won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics, flew home to a hero’s welcome Tuesday with a nationally televised tribute by the president and donors pledging more than $1 million worth of cash and gifts, including a resort house and free lunch buffets for life.
The 24-year-old’s wins in the men’s floor exercise and vault were the largest victory ever by a Filipino athlete since the Philippines joined the Games a century ago. Two Filipino boxers, Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas, won bronze medals in women’s boxing in Paris.
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Silver medalist Artur Davtyan, left, of Armenia, stands in the podium with gold medalist Carlos Edriel Yulo, center, of the Philippines, and bronze medalist Harry Hepworth, of Britain, during the medal ceremony for the men's artistic gymnastics individual vault finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Paris, France.(AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., right, meets Olympic double gold medalist in gymnastics, Carlos Yulo during a welcome ceremony at the Malcañang presidential palace in Manila, Philippines on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe, Pool)
Filipino athletes who competed in the Paris Olympics arrive during a welcome ceremony at the Malcañang presidential palace in Manila, Philippines on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe, Pool)
A banner congratulating Filipino gymnast Carlo Yulo, who won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics, is displayed in Leveriza, Pasay City, Manila, Philippines where Yulo grew up, on Tuesday, Aug 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Joeal Calupitan)
Rodrigo Frisco, 74-year-old grandfather of Filipino gymnast Carlo Yulo, who won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics, holds photos of his grandson on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024, in a neighborhood in Manila, Phillippines, where Yulo grew up. (AP Photo/Joeal Calupitan)
Filipino gymnast Carlo Yulo, who won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics, arrives in Manila, Philippines, on Tuesday, Aug 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Joeal Calupitan)
Silver medalist Artur Davtyan, left, of Armenia, stands in the podium with gold medalist Carlos Edriel Yulo, center, of the Philippines, and bronze medalist Harry Hepworth, of Britain, during the medal ceremony for the men's artistic gymnastics individual vault finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Paris, France.(AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
The euphoria over Yulo's wins has provided a respite for a nation long ridden with poverty, deep divisions and conflicts.
Arriving in Manila, Yulo and the other Filipino athletes who participated in the Olympics were welcomed by flag-waving admirers who reached out for handshakes and took selfies. The athletes were met by their families before proceeding to the Malacanang palace, where President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. gave them presidential citations and a million pesos each ($17,500).
But Yulo got 20 million pesos ($350,000) from Marcos, who acknowledged the difficulties the athletes went through and “no official technical support from the government,” a longstanding complaint.
“They did it on their own. Of course, there are some who helped, sometimes the government is able to help, but there is no formal structure to help our athletes," Marcos said, and promised to fix it.
Cash and gifts pledged separately by other government offices, business tycoons and leading Philippine corporations for Yulo, including a condominium unit and a resort house south of Manila, would amount to more than 58 million pesos ($1 million). Prominent companies offered free pizzas, ice cream and lunch and dinner buffets for life along with free domestic and international flights.
Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao, who rose to global fame for winning titles in eight different weight classes and for his rags-to-riches life story, promised to reward Yulo with an unspecified amount of cash.
A celebratory parade for Yulo and the other athletes on Wednesday along Manila’s main streets is expected to draw thousands of people. It will pass near a poor community where he grew up and first trained in gymnastics with his siblings in a public gym, where a coach first noticed the impressive skills of the then-7-year-old.
"I’ll welcome him with a hug and we’ll jump together in joy,” Rodrigo Frisco, a 74-year-old relative, told The Associated Press in the neighborhood where the gold medalist has become a poster boy for hope. “Who would believe that these narrow alleys and small houses would produce a champion?”
Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz clinched the first-ever Olympic gold for the Philippines in Tokyo in 2021.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., right, meets Olympic double gold medalist in gymnastics, Carlos Yulo during a welcome ceremony at the Malcañang presidential palace in Manila, Philippines on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe, Pool)
Filipino athletes who competed in the Paris Olympics arrive during a welcome ceremony at the Malcañang presidential palace in Manila, Philippines on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Basilio Sepe, Pool)
A banner congratulating Filipino gymnast Carlo Yulo, who won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics, is displayed in Leveriza, Pasay City, Manila, Philippines where Yulo grew up, on Tuesday, Aug 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Joeal Calupitan)
Rodrigo Frisco, 74-year-old grandfather of Filipino gymnast Carlo Yulo, who won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics, holds photos of his grandson on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024, in a neighborhood in Manila, Phillippines, where Yulo grew up. (AP Photo/Joeal Calupitan)
Filipino gymnast Carlo Yulo, who won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics, arrives in Manila, Philippines, on Tuesday, Aug 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Joeal Calupitan)
Silver medalist Artur Davtyan, left, of Armenia, stands in the podium with gold medalist Carlos Edriel Yulo, center, of the Philippines, and bronze medalist Harry Hepworth, of Britain, during the medal ceremony for the men's artistic gymnastics individual vault finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Paris, France.(AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — A marble statue of a woman believed to be more than 2,000 years old was found abandoned in a garbage bag near the Greek city of Thessaloniki, police said Wednesday.
A resident discovered the 80-centimeter (31-inch) headless statue beside a trash bin in Neoi Epivates, outside Greece’s second-largest city. The man turned it over to local authorities, who contacted archaeologists to assess its significance.
Police said experts, following an initial evaluation, determined the piece dates to the Hellenistic era, a period roughly between 320 and 30 B.C. that was marked by a flourishing of art and culture following the conquests of Alexander the Great.
The statue was sent for further examination by archaeologists. It will ultimately be handed over to the local antiquities authority for preservation and study.
Police opened an investigation to determine who discarded the statue and briefly detained a man for questioning who was later released without charge.
Accidental archaeological discoveries are relatively common in Greece, a country renowned for its ancient heritage, and often made during building construction or public works. In December, workers installing natural gas pipelines near Athens uncovered a Roman-era statue of Hermes buried upright in a brick-lined pit near the Acropolis.
Thessaloniki weeks ago unveiled a trove of antiquities found during the decades-long construction of its metro system, which officially opened in November. Key finds, including a marble-paved Roman thoroughfare and tens of thousands of artifacts spanning the Greek, Byzantine, and Ottoman periods, are now showcased at subway stations.
This undated handout photo provided by the Greek Police and released on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025 shows a marble statue of a woman believed to be more than 2,000 years old which was found abandoned in a garbage bag in the northern city of Thessaloniki, Greece. (Greek Police via AP)