Fencing a family affair for Hurme brothers

In December, freshman Ed Hurme became the third of his siblings to win an epee match for the Princeton fencing program. With brother Tommi a junior co-captain for the Tigers and sister Kristina '01 an alum of the women's squad, it seemed clear that some things run in the family.

While the kids have inherited the sport, that doesn't mean the parents have given it up.

"Mom's doing great," Tommi Hurme said of his mother's, June Hurme, still-vibrant competitive fencing career. "She called a couple days ago and told me she won some competition. She's dominating in her age group."

For the San-Antonio-based Hurme family, mom's success is nothing out of the ordinary. Tommi and Edward's uncle also enjoyed a brief stint in the sport, while their father, Risto Hurme, took up fencing at the age of 17 and won the NCAA title three years in a row as an epeeist at NYU.

At the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany, Hurme represented his native Finland in the modern-pentathlon team event — fencing, swimming, shooting, running and horseback riding his way to a bronze medal.

"Even when we win, he's like 'Why'd you give up those touches,' " Tommi said. "He's ruthless. But he's still very humble, so it's never too much [for us]."

Having such accomplished parents provided powerful motivation for Tommi and Edward, as each took up fencing around the age of 13 and proved wholly committed to the sport.

"I didn't get to hang out with friends on the weekends," Edward said. "[During] my junior year [of high school], the fencing club in San Antonio fell apart. I had to drive an hour to another city every day to train. The days when I picked up my coach, it was another half hour longer. He kept talking [in the car] so I couldn't fall asleep and couldn't get homework done. It was miserable."

All that misery was not in vain, however, as Edward, along with brother Tommi, now forms the backbone of the Tigers' four-man epee squad.

The brothers went undefeated in six matches apiece against Harvard and Brown a week ago in the Ivy "South" competition a week ago.

For Tommi, who has defeated all eight of his opponents after coming back from a semester abroad in Budapest, the win against the Crimson was particularly significant.

Tommi defeated good friend and opponent Bengi Ungar of Harvard, bringing back memories of the Intercollegiate Fencing Association Championship he won his freshman year.

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"[Ungar and I] were playing up to 15 bouts, and he was beating me 8-2 after the first period," Tommi said. "Then the coach told me to go at him like a tank. I ended up winning that match and went on to win [the championship]."

Tommi won the IFA Championship again in his sophomore year and will look to defend his title in the coming weeks.

Upon matriculating to the University, Edward has also thrived with a weapon in hand, emerging as Princeton's second-strongest epeeist.

"I think I'm training harder now that Tommi's back," Edward said. "He has a positive influence."

The similarities between the co-captain and his younger brother have not gone unnoticed by their fellow fencers.

A particularly good judge is senior epeeist Erin McGarry of the women's fencing team, who has fenced with the Hurme brothers since their high school days in San Antonio, Texas.

"Tommi leads both the men's and women's epee team daily in warmup and drills," McGarry said in an email. "He is always willing to provide help if we have questions about the drills or need advice during bouting. I wouldn't be surprised to later see Edward also fulfilling a leadership position on the team. He is an outgoing person who is skilled at motivating the team."

By the time Edward is leading the Tigers, Tommi hopes to have followed in father Risto's international footsteps.

"[After graduation] I want to work in a TV studio and be in New York," Tommi said. "I really want to be in New York so I can keep fencing and try for maybe the 2012 Olympics. I definitely want to continue fencing, and I should try to get the best out of my body when it can still take it."