MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte is scheduled to meet with world champion gymnast Carlos Yulo and gold medalist boxer Nesthy Petecio at Malacañan Palace on Wednesday.
In a press conference held Tuesday, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the two Filipino athletes would pay a courtesy call on the President, following their historic world championship feats.
“They will be meeting with the President. May courtesy call sila (They will have a courtesy call),” the Palace official announced.
Yulo, 19, is the first Filipino to take home the gold medal at the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany.
He bested Israel’s Artem Dolgopyat and China’s Xiao Ruoteng, who bagged the silver and bronze medals, respectively.
Petecio, meanwhile, emerged as the second Filipino to win gold medal in the AIBA Women’s Boxing Championships, besting Liudmila Vorontsove at the latter’s turf in Ulan-Ude Russia.
Both Yulo and Petecio will receive PHP500,000 each under Republic Act 10699, or the National Athletes and Coaches Benefits and Incentives Act, and additional PHP500,000 each from the Philippine Sports Commission following their success.
Panelo could not say whether Duterte would grant additional cash incentives to the two athletes, but hinted a possibility, since the President is a “generous” person.
“Si Presidente, generous ‘yan (The President is generous). Let’s see,” he said.
