Maxine Esteban: It was never a fight between me and Sam

MANILA, Philippines: In her first remarks since the Philippine Fencing Association's (PFA) official statement over her change of nationalities, Filipino Ivorian fencer Maxine Esteban said she was saddened that former teammate and fellow foilist Samantha Catantan was brought up over the former's removal from the national team.

"It saddens me to see my teammate's name brought up in this issue. It was never a fight between me and Sam. It was my quest for justice against my removal from the national team despite being issued an approved written excuse letter to skip all local qualifiers and training while recovering from my surgery," Esteban wrote on Facebook on Saturday.