Chloe San Jose is no longer letting things slide.
The longtime partner of two-time Olympic gold medalist Carlos "Caloy" Yulo answered back at the gymnast's mother, Angelica Yulo, after a fresh round of jabs online – this time over Carlos' admission that he has no plans to invite his parents to their future wedding.
The exchange started when a friend of Angelica put up a Facebook post teasing her about the situation, complete with screenshots from Carlos and Chloe's interview with broadcast journalist Karen Davila and a photo of Angelica in a red gown.
"'Di ka raw invited sa kasal ng anak mo kay Duding, pero kung sakaling magbago naman ang isip nila, so ready ka na, 'di ba? Ito ang dapat mong suotin para makatipid ka na at 'di ka na bumili ng gown mo. Mag-red ka para naman stand out ang ganda mo! Sandali, nasabihan ka ba?" part of the caption read.
Angelica did not spell out what she thought of it. She simply replied: "Wooooiiiiii ahahah."
That was enough to draw Chloe into the thread. In a comment that netizens quickly screenshot and passed around, she said Angelica had not been telling her friends the whole story – claiming that the two of them, along with the rest of the family, had already sat down and talked things over, and that they even hugged before parting ways. That runs counter to earlier talk that Angelica walked out of the meeting.
"Baka naman gusto mo ikwento kay miss jay mo na nag-usap-usap na tayo ng maayos? Saksi lahat ng mga anak mo at asawa mo + isa sa mga pinakamalapit mo na kaibigan. Maka-post 'tong friend mo kuno, halatang hindi ka nagkukuwento ng totoo sa kanya/sa kanila. LOLLLL HAHAHAH. Sabagay, palabas mo nga sa iba, nag-walkout ka? Eh nagyakapan nga tayo bago maghiwa-hiwalay. SENDINGS HUGSSS THO," Chloe wrote.
She added that she had to use another account just to join the conversation, since Angelica had blocked her.
"'Di lang ako makapag-comment with my personal account, unblock mo na kasi ako chiii," she said.
In another comment, Chloe suggested that the whole thing could have been settled with a simple request.
"Gusto mo lang naman pala ata ma-invite, sana sinabi mo na lang," she said.
She also said she and Carlos had been open to keeping things peaceful, but that the other side was not meeting them halfway.
"I told you, we can all be civil – but well, you're clearly not willing to," Chloe said.
The online tussle broke out days after Carlos, in his interview with Karen, was asked whether his parents would be at the wedding once he and Chloe decide to walk down the aisle. His answer was direct: he would rather keep the day to themselves.
"For me, I think because 'yun kasal po namin 'yun and kami po, relationship po namin 'yun. And mas pipiliin kong kami na lang," he said. "Ayaw ko ring masira 'yung moment namin [na] para sa aming dapat dalawa. Ayaw ko 'yung ano eh, paano po ba, mamantsahan pa."
The gymnast made clear he is not carrying a grudge. He said he has long forgiven his parents for what happened – but that forgiveness does not automatically come with a seat at the wedding.
"Madami na silang ginawa na pinatawad ko na and hanggang doon na lang din po. So, hindi po. Gusto ko sa amin lang po 'yun," he said.
What he wants, he said, is a day that feels light.
"I really want it to be really full of love and joy kapag nangyari po 'yun," he added.
Chloe, for her part, said she is leaving the decision to Carlos.
"Well, honestly, of course they're your parents, you know, I think what he's comfortable with, then that would be what I'm comfortable with," she said.
She said that whoever ends up in the pews, the day will still be about the two of them.
"I think it's because... that wedding day, it will really be about us. Whatever the outside people do or the guests do, I think we would really have our eyes locked onto each other," Chloe said.
"So, with or without them, we would have our eyes locked onto each other so it wouldn't bother me as much," she added.
The rift between Carlos and his parents, Angelica and Mark Andrew Yulo, first spilled into public view in 2024, in the same stretch that the gymnast was making history. Carlos bagged two gold medals at the Paris Olympics – in floor exercise and vault – becoming the first Filipino athlete to win two golds in a single Olympic Games. Instead of a clean victory lap, the weeks that followed were taken over by a family quarrel that played out in press interviews and Facebook comment sections.
Angelica accused Chloe of coming between her and her son, while Carlos spoke about a strained relationship with his mother that included questions over how his earnings were handled.
His father, meanwhile, publicly called on him to apologize for calling Angelica a thief. Angelica later held a press conference in August 2024 to say sorry and to ask that the issue be set aside so the country could focus on her son's win.
Two years on, the peace has not fully held. Carlos remains estranged from his parents even as he stays close to his younger siblings, Karl Eldrew and Elaiza. He and Chloe, who have been living together since 2023, said on Fast Talk with Boy Abunda last March that they are talking about marriage and do not feel the need for either family's blessing before they tie the knot. No wedding date has been announced.
The latest round of comments has since pulled in more of the family. Carlos' maternal grandmother, Angelita Poquiz Frisco, joined the thread and traded barbs with Chloe over the Yulo siblings, prompting some netizens to ask her to stop. Chloe also set off talk of a separate disagreement inside the household after hinting that Angelica had done to Karl Eldrew what she once did to Carlos. She did not explain further.
As of writing, Carlos has not addressed the exchange, and Angelica has yet to respond in detail to Chloe's claim about their private meeting.
—By Paolo Lim