By: Waylon Galvez
Sophia “Opao” Catantan made history after clinching a bronze medal on the final day of the 2025 FIE Singapore Foil Satellite held Sunday at the OCBC Arena in Singapore.
A sister of Paris Olympics fencer and Penn State University standout Samantha Catantan, Opao — the third among four Catantan fencing siblings — posted three wins and three losses in the pool round to advance to the Direct Elimination stage.
Seeded 24th in the knockout bracket, the University of the East Red Warriors junior standout dominated Chang Manli of Chinese Taipei, 15-5, in the Round of 64, then outdueled Singapore’s Angellena Wong, 15-10, in the Round of 32.
Catantan continued her impressive run by beating Thi Thu Phuong Nguyen of Vietnam, 15-11, in the Round of 16 before stunning tournament top seed Aila Mamedova, an Athletes Individuels Neutres (AIN) competitor, 15-12, in the quarterfinals to secure a place in the medal round.
Although she bowed to fellow AIN fencer and No. 4 seed Vladislava Peniushkina, 15-3, in the semifinals, Catantan’s bronze finish marked a historic moment for Philippine fencing — the first since Maxine Esteban did so in international competition.
Esteban, while representing the Philippines, had previously won a bronze medal at the 2018 Senior Satellite World Cup in Copenhagen, Denmark, followed by a silver medal in the individual event at the 2021 Tashkent Satellite in Uzbekistan. She is now a naturalized athlete of Ivory Coast, having represented the West African nation in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Peniushkina went on to win gold, while Anna Solovena (AIN) settled for silver, and Singapore’s two-time Olympian Amita Berthier shared the bronze podium finish with Catantan.
“Sobrang saya po at proud talaga. All the hard work, late-night trainings, and sacrifices finally paid off. Every struggle was worth it, and I’m just so grateful for everyone who’s been part of this journey,” said Catantan, who turns 16 on November 10.
A Grade 10 student at UE, Catantan is set to compete next in the 2025 Junior World Cup and the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand this December. Beyond her medal, she said what made this moment extra special was having her family — her father Jon, mother Aileen, and youngest sister Shy — cheering for her in Singapore.
“Happy and proud to bring home bronze, and mas special kasi andito halos buong family ko kasama ko sa Singapore to watch and support… Si Ate Sam lang po ang wala pero tutok sa social media maski gabi na po sa US,” added Catantan, a two-time Nickel Asia Corporation–Siklab Awards honoree and 2024 Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Awards recipient.
Meanwhile, Allysah Catantan, the second of the Catantan sisters, finished 19th overall, while Miyake Capina placed 25th out of 53 fencers in the women’s foil category.
In the men’s foil division, Sammuel Tranquilan and Nathaniel Perez both fell short in the quarterfinals, finishing 7th and 8th, respectively, among 75 participants.
According to Amat Canlas, head coach of both the national team and the UE fencing squad, Catantan’s achievement reflects the team’s consistent training and improved preparation ahead of the SEA Games.
“Malaking bagay na tuloy-tuloy ang training ng national team — morning and evening sessions. Saka ang laking contribution simula nung dumating si coach Kim Hyungsup of Korea, ang laking tulong sa foil team,” said Canlas.
