Mother knows best: Sam Cantantan’s Mom - her first supporter

The saying “Mother knows best” rang true in Aileen Cantantan - the mother of first-time Olympian fencer Samantha Kyle Catantan who represented the Philippines in the fencing women’s individual foil last Paris Olympics.

Samantha started trying fencing at the age of nine and she saw the sport as unique, that’s why she was drawn and fell in love with it.

And the first person to support her newly found passion was none other than her mom Aileen.

The fencing coach seemed to have predicted the future as Samantha became an Olympian at the age of 22 to end the 32-year drought of the country in fencing. She was even the first Filipina fencer to do the feat.

Sam Cantantan started her journey at the Quezon City Sports Enhancement Program (QCSEP). The program helped her clinch bronze in her first competition at 1st Lipa Academy Fencing Tropee in Batangas.

In her college days, she got a scholarship from the University where she competed in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and earned numerous awards, including the MVP.

Then, she earned an athletic scholarship to Penn State University, where she earned a degree in Accountancy recently. She got the opportunity after advancing to the round of 16 of the 2019 World Junior Fencing Championship that was held in Poland.

Going forward to the Paris Olympics, Sam surprised the world when she defeated Brazil’s Mariana Pistoia in the first round, then battled toe-to-toe against world’s No. 2 ranked Arianna Errigo of Italy in the table of 32 where she only lost by three points, 12-15.

That success she had in the Summer Games made her rank jump from the previous 266th to 87th in the world.

And who inspired and supported Samantha during her Olympic campaign? - None other than her ever-supportive mom, Aileen who even traveled to Paris to cheer and witness the fulfillment of her daughter’s childhood dream.

Together with her husband Jon, Aileen has given Sam all the support that she needed but there’s more good news, not just in their family but also to the Philippine fencing community as the three sisters of Samantha are also dreaming to become world-class fencers some day.

Sam’s sister Ysah and Sophia are already athlete-scholars, and members of the national fencing team while the youngest Shanelle also aspires to be trained in the women’s sabre category.

Asked what advice she can give to other parents so they could see their children succeed, Aileen She said, "As a parent, my advice is to support your children in whatever sport they choose and to trust their coach. Let the coach handle the training and discipline, as they know what’s best for your child. Always support and cheer for them at every competition, and never make them feel inadequate or that all their hard work and expenses are in vain if they don’t win."

Some Filipinos might not have experienced the same support that the Cantantan sisters have but in Samantha and her siblings' case, they can attest to the saying that “Mother knows best!”