Filipino fencers eye world, Asian stints
MANILA, Philippines — There’s no letting up for the Philippine junior fencing team
After making their presence felt in a regional tournament recently, the young Filipino fencers are now setting their sights on both the World and Asian championships for junior and cadet levels scheduled next year.
Eight fencers from different fencing clubs earned individual medals in their respective categories in the just concluded 2026 Southeast Asian Fencing Federation (SEAFF) Championship held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Oscar Del Castillo, 16, led the charge for the youth team as he bagged the men’s epee gold medal in the 17-under cadet and settled with a silver medal in the 21-under junior — the same age bracket where 15-year-old Willa Galvez took a hard-earned bronze medal in the women’s individual foil.
Also with a silver in cadet was Hagia del Castillo in women’s foil, while with bronzes include Yuna Canlas and Victoria Ebdane in women’s foil; Papina Torre in women’s epee, Jethro Chan in men’s foil; and Don Reyzel Geronimo in men’s epee.
Their respective finishes in the SEAFF earned the fencers corresponding ranking points, which will be added up to other international events they joined such as the Asian Cadet Cup, and the local competition Philippine Fencing Association (PFA) Junior and Cadet, which will have its third and final leg this weekend at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
“It’s not just the medals, but equally important is the points we’ll get from the SEAFF because points we earned will be added to our overall ranking points,” del Castillo said at the weekly Philippine Sportswriters Association (PFA) Forum on Tuesday at the media room of the Philippine Sports Commission.
According to the 16-year-old Ebdane, a Grade 11 student at Home School Global, competing in the SEAFF is necessary, saying: “It’s important as an athlete to compete in as many international competitions as we can, especially in a competition that allows me to have the exposure. Playing against players from other countries (are) things that will push me to be better (as a fencer) both locally and internationally.”
Galvez said that following the SEAFF, they are all looking forward to the final leg of the Philippine Fencing Association (PFA) Junior and Cadet ranking set August 29 and 30.
“It’s going to be an exciting third leg because it’s the final leg, and the points every fencer will get is very crucial,” Galvez, 15, a Grade 10 student at the University of the East said in the Forum backed by San Miguel Corporation, PSC, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, and the country’s 24/7 sports app ArenaPlus.
In the past, the top four fencers from cadet and junior categories have represented the Philippines in the World Championship and the Asian Championship. The Asian cadet and junior will be in Wuxi, China in March, while next year’s world meet will be held April 9-17 in Tallinn, Estonia.
As for the SEAFF meet, Torre said it has bonded them even more even though they come from different weapons — foil, epee and saber.
“Bringing the team together to bond, every time we get together, we cheer for each other which is good,” said Torre, a Grade 10 student at Waldorf School. (PSA pool story)
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