BANGKOK, Thailand — Veteran fencer Noelito Jose Jr. was left longing for his first gold in the Southeast Asian Games after squandering the opportunity in the men’s fencing epee individual event of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games at the Island Hall in Fashion Island Mall here late Wednesday. 

Jose went into the final round with a 12-8 lead but failed to hold his ground as Vietnamese Phuoc Den Nguyen equalized at 14-all and then scored the winning hit to seize the gold medal 15-14. 

“It was a sorry loss. It was almost a gold for us but it turned out to be another silver finish,” Jose said. 

“Very regrettable but I will move on from this.” 

Jose beat Thai Chinnaphat Chaloemchanen 15-3 in the semifinal round after defeating Vietnamese Nguyen Tien Nhat 14-13 in the quarterfinals. But he could not just get the job done in the finale. 

 “That is the only medal that I do not have — the gold in the SEA Games. I thought I could get it, but it slipped away,” Jose said. “I will come back stronger for next year’s overseas competition like the Asian Games.” 

Jose, who has been competing in the SEA Games since 2015 in Singapore, won the bronze in the 2019 games plus three straight silver medals, counting the others he won in 2022 in Hanoi and 2023 in Phnom Penh. 

Paris Olympian Samantha Catantan and sister Janna settled for the bronze medal in the women’s individual foil while Jhester Concepcion and Eunice Daniel Villanueva grabbed the men’s individual sabre bronze medal.