By: Waylon Galvez
With a heavy heart, University of the Philippines fencer Juliana Gomez — the reigning women’s epee queen — will not be suiting up for the Fighting Maroons in Season 87 of the UAAP Fencing Championship, set to take place from April 22 to 25 at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Vito Cruz, Manila.
Gomez had informed UP head coach Allan Dator of her decision months ago, as her focus has shifted toward a greater ambition: securing a spot on the national team, after falling short in her previous four attempts.
A cum laude graduate with a degree in Public Administration, Gomez is now pursuing her master’s degree at UP. Between her academic workload and intensive training with the national team, she admits she could no longer dedicate time to the university squad.
Because of this, Gomez has decided to forego her final year of UAAP eligibility.
“I really thought about it,” Gomez said in an interview with Tiebreaker Times. “I spoke to Coach Allan and I was just honest about it. I’ll help out the team as much as I can and as much as he’ll allow me to.”
“I’m already turning 25 this year, so there’s a cutoff for eligibility (in the UAAP for next season), and now just focusing on making the lineup for the national team, also the SEA Games year,” she added.
Gomez captured back-to-back gold medals in women’s epee during Seasons 85 and 86, defeating Cyrra Vergara of De La Salle University in both finals. She also helped lead UP to bronze medal finishes in the team event over the past two seasons.
Still, representing the Philippines remains her ultimate dream.
She has repeatedly attempted to break into the national team through the Philippine Fencing Association rankings, including during the 2021 and 2023 Southeast Asian Games selection periods. Unfortunately, she missed the top four cutoff each time — the usual threshold for national team inclusion.
“This has been my dream ever since,” said Gomez, the daughter of actor-athlete-turned-politician Congressman Richard Gomez of Leyte’s fourth district, and Ormoc City Mayor Lucy Torres. “I feel like my two seasons in the UAAP… it was honestly just a bonus because my goal from the beginning was to make it to the national team. This is actually my fifth time trying for the national team — and it’s also a SEA Games year too.
“If ever I make it to the national team, I don’t want to just participate or just be part, I want to win something for the country. I want to contribute,” said Gomez, who currently ranks third overall after the first two of five legs in the PFA’s national team qualifying series for this year’s SEA Games in Thailand.
Gomez shared that her father — himself a fencing gold medalist in the 2005 SEA Games — fully supports her decision.
“He’s been supportive ever since. I know in his heart he also wants me to be part of the national team,” she said.
“I’m working with coach Benny Garcia, understanding the game, playing with lots of fencers, because it’s hard. Anyone has a chance, especially in women’s epee—it’s hard to qualify,” she added.
As for the UP squad, Gomez leaves with confidence, knowing Coach Dator is steering the team in the right direction and that new, eligible fencers have joined the ranks this year.
“I feel a little better knowing they have a good chance of winning,” she said.
