For senior foil Alejandro Bras, fencing is more than just a sport. Bras has used fencing as his ticket around the world.
International competitions take place in all types of glamorous locations, and Bras has used his world-class abilities to take full advantage of the opportunities, traveling to places such as Germany, Spain and Italy for tournaments. At the tender age of 18, Bras competed at the World Cup in Madrid, Spain, and placed an impressive seventh overall.
As much as the decision has paid off, Bras' choice to take up the sport of fencing was actually more of an accident than anything planned.
"I was walking with my parents and my brother in the city, and we saw people fencing on an outdoor track," Bras said. "My brother thought it looked interesting and took it up, and, as most younger brothers do, I followed him."
When he was 5, Bras began practicing with the foil at the Boston Fencing Club near his home in Lexington, Mass. There, he honed his skills for the next 13 years.
Bras continued to compete for his club team throughout high school, as Massachusetts did not have an extensive secondary school fencing program. In the meantime, he began a fencing club at Lexington High School to teach his fellow students about the sport and generate more interest.
Senior foil Jesse Platt, another member of Princeton's fencing team, was also a member of that high school club.
When he was not fencing, Bras was out on the soccer and baseball fields, but when international fencing competition heated up at the end of his sophomore year of high school, he decided to focus solely on fencing.
During his time at Lexington High, Bras managed to win back-to-back National Fencing Championships for his club team and remain ranked as one of the top-eight foilists in the country.
He was invited to travel to tournaments all over the United States — he has been to every state except four — and all over the world as well.
As a high school senior, Bras was recruited by the fencing programs of many top universities, ultimately choosing between MIT, Penn and Princeton. Fortunately for the Tigers, he was swayed by the academic vigor he found at Princeton.
"It was a big transition from club fencing to college fencing," said Bras. "It's a completely different atmosphere, much more team-oriented and much more time-consuming."
Even though Bras might have felt the transition was difficult, he fit in rather seamlessly. As a freshman, he was given the team's Best Freshman Male Fencer Award, and as a sophomore he lost just three bouts the entire season en route to All-Ivy League recognition. Unfortunately, Bras had suffered with back problems for six to eight years, and by his junior year, he was forced to take time off from the team to recover.
Not working out or competing with the team did not sit well with Bras, however, and he decided to return to the lineup for his final year. So far it has been an uphill battle to get back into top form, but Bras is confident he can do so in time to lead the Tigers into their season-ending championship matches.
"My goal is for our team to win Ivies," Bras said. "It would be a huge victory for us. We'd be coming in as underdogs, and for us to take the title would be a spectacular way to end my career."
Bras believes that with new coach Zoltan Dudas bringing in a stricter, more goal-oriented mentality, an Ivy League title is within the team's grasp.
While Bras' fencing career at Princeton is coming to an end, he's not counting on leaving the fencing world for good just yet. Depending on where he lands after graduation, Bras is considering continuing to fence at his home club in Boston or potentially taking up a new role as a coach.
Whatever he decides to do, Bras certainly has the tenacity and determination to go far. At the very least, he has the frequent-flier miles.
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