FAMILY SURPRISE BOOSTS BERTHIER

Foil champion says sister's unexpected voice from the stands inspired comeback

- Deepanraj Ganesan

First she unleashed a loud, triumphant roar, followed by a hug with teammate Maxine Wong, and then Singapore fencer Amita Berthier pointed her foil to the stands, almost like a salute.

At the end of it were her sister Aarya and brother Ashok. At the Fashion Island Shopping Mall's Island Hall on Dec 17, her siblings celebrated her long-awaited return to the top of the SEA Games podium.

An emotional Berthier explained that her elder sister had played her part in her sensational comeback in the semifinals of the women's foil individual event.

At 8-14 down and on the brink of elimination, she went on to score seven consecutive points and pull off a jaw dropping 15-14 win against the Philippines' Samantha Catantan for a spot in the final.

She said: "My brother and my sister are here... They actually surprised me. I didn't expect anybody to be here at all. It means a lot. My sister used to fence with me.