Defending champion Artem Dolgopyat of Israel settled for the silver this time while Great Britain’s Jake Jarman took the bronze. 

Dolgopyat set the pace with 14.966 points. The unfazed Yulo opened with a two-and-a-half twist to front double pike when his turn came. Then, he went into a front double full to front double tuck. 

After a full-twisting double, a sure-footed landing made it clear he was the contender to watch. When he stuck his final landing, the double world champion punched the air with both fists, let out a huge roar and then saluted the applauding crowd that had leapt to their feet.

When the final score flashed on the big screen at Bercy Arena, the 24-year-old broke down in tears after matching the achievement of weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz, who won the country’s first-ever gold at the Covid-delayed 2020 Tokyo Games.

"I'm so overwhelmed. I'm feeling grateful for having this medal and for God. He protected me, as always," said Yulo in disbelief to be the first man to win gold for The Philippines. Yulo, who trained for seven years in Japan due to a lack of opportunities back home, said he hoped his historic win would help the sport grow in his Southeast Asian country.

"We are a really small country and the portion of athletes is not the same as the US or UK, so to be able to get a gold medal is really big for us," the two-time Olympian said after. “I dedicate this to the Filipinos who supported me. I’m really grateful to them.” 

He has a chance to earn another medal in the vault final on Sunday. The men’s final vault begins at 16:24 CEST.