From 2 rooms to 3: Yulo's condo reward upgraded after 2nd gold medal

MANILA, Philippines — Instead of a two-bedroom condominium unit, Filipino Olympic gymnast Carlos Yulo will receive a three-bedroom property from the real-estate company Megaworld.

The corporation owned by Andrew Tan announced this in a statement on Monday, following Yulo's historic double gold-medal finish at the 2024 Paris Olympics over the weekend.

The upgraded residential unit, located in a 50-hectare township on McKinley Hill in Taguig City, is worth P32 million. Megaworld initially offered him a P24-million unit after he won gold in the men's floor exercise on Saturday, August 3.

Like the first property offered, the upgraded unit is furnished and includes two balconies, a room for a housekeeper and a parking slot.

The company also pledged a "special cash bonus" of P3 million to Yulo for becoming the first Filipino athlete to win two Olympic gold medals.

"We are boosting our reward for Carlos now totaling P35 million," said Lourdes Gutierrez-Alfonso, president of Megaworld, in a statement. "He truly deserves this, and we will always be proud of him for elevating Filipino excellence to the next level."

The company first announced that it would reward every Filipino Olympic gold medalist with a condominium unit worth P24 million on August 1.

On Monday, the ways and means committee at the House of Representatives expedited a bill to exempt athletes' incentives from taxes following Yulo's unprecedented Olympic success.

If passed into law, the government will not take a cut from the cash rewards Yulo and other athletes will receive upon their return to the Philippines.

Yulo is set to receive P6 million from the House of Representatives, in addition to the P10 million prize allotted by law from the Philippine Sports Commission for an Olympic Gold Medal of Valor.

This is aside from the prizes offered by billionaires, tycoons and companies, which will shower the world's best gymnast with rewards in cash and kind.