Emma Malabuyo knows what the pressure of the Olympics feels like. She was an alternate for Team USA gymnastics at the Tokyo Olympics that was held in 2021.
Now, she can celebrate another chance to actually compete after securing a quota spot for the Paris Olympics with the Philippines.
"I know myself and my gymnastics and there's still this like a lingering feeling that I haven't reached that one goal that's always been in the back of my mind," Malabuyo said. "I was like, if I'm feeling healthy and I'm feeling really good and I'm building so much confidence in myself. Just having that belief in myself really motivated me and made me think, I want to just give this a shot no matte what, to have no regrets and just try my best."
Malabuyo finished third in the all-around at the Asian Gymnastics Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan May 24. That made her the highest-pacing athlete who is eligible for the quota.
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Representing the Philippines, Malabuyo finished third place in the all-around with a 50.398 total Friday (24 May) at the Asian Gymnastics Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. According to the International Olympic Committee, the Olympic quota allocation system is a program designed to limit the number of athletes participating and prevent a small number of countries from dominating the field of an Olympic event.
The UCLA junior credits her parents for really giving her the push to try to make it to the Olympics at the Asian Gymnastics Championships.
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"When I first did my elite competition with the Philippines, I actually did pretty good for my first one being back. I thought to myself like, wow, I'm still capable of doing these high level skills and it started igniting a fire inside of me," she said.
But with the encouragement of her parents, Malabuyo persisted in hopes of representing the country her grandparents are from.
"After I kind of renounced my retirement from competing for USA gymnastics it started kind of happening. My parents are both full Filipino and so they were able to get their Filipino passport and then through them, I was able to get mine too. So because I'm full Filipino and my parents were able to get full citizenship, then I was able to do that too. So that's how I'm able to compete for the Philippines to have this opportunity to compete for my grandparents' home country," Malabuyo said.
Gymnastics for men and women at the Paris Olympics will begin July 27 a day after the Opening Ceremony on July 26.
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