Sam Catantan bucks injury to beat world no. 65 Pistoia, advance to Table of 32 of Paris Olympics

Filipina fencer Sam Catantan got the better of higher-ranked Mariana Pistoia of Brazil during their bout in Table of 64 of the women's individual foil in the 2024 Paris Olympics on Sunday at the Grand Palais.

Playing through a knee injury, the 22-year-old Catantan, who currently ranks 266th in the world, eked out a tight 15-13 win against a more veteran and more experienced Pistoia, who is the world no. 65 in foil, to move forward in Table of 32.

Catantan, a former UAAP juniors standout, will take on Italian veteran Arianna Errigo who had earned a bye in the opening round after emerging as the top-seeded player in the tournament.

READ MORE | Philippines at the 2024 Paris Olympics

Catantan had a slow start with the Brazilian bet opening the match with a quick 3-0 lead in the first round before the Filipina fencer leveled it to 3-all with 1:46 to go in the first.

Catantan then stared at a 7-4 hole late in the first round before sustaining a left knee injury after a lunge attempt in the 24 second-mark. But she recovered and scored two quick points in the last 21 seconds to trail by just one before the second round, 6-7.

With momentum on her side, Catantan secured a 10-8 lead but Pistoia continued to threaten a comeback and forced another 13-all deadlock in the final 1:27 of the penultimate round.

But the Filipina ace nailed two clutch points en route to the victory.

Catantan and Errigo will face off later at 4:25 p.m. with the winner advancing to the Table of 16.

—JMB, GMA Integrated News