Fil-Am Lee Kiefer wins second straight Olympic gold in fencing
FENCING is one sport in the Paris Olympics where the country has “technically” three reasons to be proud about.
Lee Kiefer, a Filipino-American, was the biggest of them all, delivering an effort for the ages by capturing her second straight Olympic gold medal in women’s individual foil at the expense of fellow American Lauren Scruggs in a one-sided 15-6 victory.
While she carried the United States flag, the country somehow cheered for the 30-year-old Lexington, Kentucky native as her mother, Teresa, was from Tagum, Davao del Norte.
It was a proud moment not just for Ms. Kiefer, but also for a gold-starved country like the Philippines, which is still in search of a second Olympic gold after weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz’s breakthrough triumph in Tokyo three years ago.
Filipinos also rooted for Sam Catantan, the country’s top fencer who was valiant before falling short in a heartbreaking 15-12 defeat to top seed Arianna Errigo of Italy in the table-of-32.
Same with Maxine Esteban, also Filipina who represented Ivory Coast and eventually succumbed in the same round to France’s Pauline Ranvier, 15-7.
Good thing Ms. Kiefer was there to save the day and give the country something to celebrate about. — Joey Villar