Samantha Catantan ready for Olympic qualifier

Samantha Catantan (right) hopes private companies will help fund her Olympic dreams. —AFP

Samantha Catantan nearly suited up for Team Philippines in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She feels more than capable of finally hurdling the hump at the forthcoming Olympic Qualification Tournament (OQT) on April 27 and April 28 in Dubai.

The Dubai zonal meet will provide one last shot for athletes who failed to qualify via the direct qualifiers and will award Olympic tickets to the men’s and women’s foil champions.

“I’m doing quite well and I feel that I’m ready for the OQT,” said Catantan, the 2021 Southeast (SEA) Asian Games gold medalist.

READ: ACL injury limits fencer Samantha Catantan

The 22-year-old from Penn State University nearly claimed a second straight gold in the 2023 SEA Games last year in Cambodia, but hurt her right knee in the semifinals, eventually settling for the silver medal.

“There’s no pain anymore and I’m getting better each day,’’ said Catantan, her doctor giving a clean bill of health following an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery in the middle of last year.

Catantan, in fact, has progressed to the championship stage of the US NCAA over the weekend after winding up second overall in the Mid-Atlantic/South Regionals held at Drew University in New Jersey.