Former U.S National Team member Emma Malabuyo qualifies for Paris Olympics 2024

Emma Malabuyo, the 21-year-old gymnast from Philippines has qualified for the upcoming Paris Olympics thanks to her performance at the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Asian Championships in Tashkent. In the process, she became the fourth Filipino gymnast to earn an Olympic ticket.

Malabuyo finished third in the all-around apparatus, winning the bronze medal with 50.398 points (13.333 points in floor exercises, 13.033 in vaults, 12.566 in beam balance, and 11.466 in uneven bars). She finished just behind the Chinese duo of Hu Jiafei and Qin Xinyi, who clinched the gold and silver medals with a point tally of 50.699 and 50.566, respectively.

Malabuyo was also in a close contest with Kazakhstan's Aida Bauyrzhanova, who finished fourth in the all-around event with a mere 0.033 points less than that of the Filipino. However, that difference proved to be decisive.

During an interview with Olympics.com, Emma Malabuyo expressed her excitement after qualifying for her first Olympics.

"I'm just so overwhelmed. I'm speechless. I think I'm still shaking just hearing the news. And I'm still like, 'Is it real?' Like, I still can't believe it just because it's been such a long and arduous path to get here," she said.

With this, the 21-year-old who was an alternate for the US Olympic team during the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, will be performing for her grandparents' country, Philippines this time around.

Malabuyo makes amends for Doho mistakes

Emma Malabuyo for the UCLA Bruins (Photo: Getty)

Emma Malabuyo could have fulfilled her Olympic qualification dream last month itself during the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Cup series in Doha. However, the 21-year-old failed to finish in the top two positions and thus had to wait for another month to secure qualification.

Malabuyo's performance at the World Cup series saw her finish below Austria's Charlie Moerz (80 points) and Spain's Laura Casabuena (75 points) in the floor exercises point tally. The 21-year-old failed to reach the finals of the floor exercises event and finished 10th in the qualifying round of the Doha event.

However, she has now made amends and will now be delighted. She will now be desperate to put up a good show at the quadrenniel event and make her country proud.