On November 12, Axel Kiefer committed to the University of Notre Dame to continue his fencing career at the Division 1 collegiate level.

“The environment is truly outstanding, and I could always picture myself being a part of the Fighting Irish. In addition, Notre Dame has excellent academics and a great fencing team,” said Kiefer.

Unlike star volleyball player Olivia Canales, who signed with TCU in front of a library packed full of people, Kiefer’s signing was private with friends and family only. To Kiefer, Notre Dame stuck out from other competing colleges including Harvard, Duke, UPenn, and Columbia.

When discussing the difference between Notre Dame and the other schools, Kiefer expressed, “For the past seven years I have taken an annual trip to South Bend to watch football. From then on I knew it was home.”

In 2013, Notre Dame, finished 2^nd in the NCAA Championship for fencing. The Fighting Irish earned 175 points while Princeton finished with 182. Currently, the Fighting Irish are nationally ranked at #6 in the country.

Kiefer said, “Growing up in a family of fencing changed my outlook on the sport. At times, trying to live up to such high expectations can be frustrating, but most of the time that doesn’t affect me.”

Kiefer’s sister, Lee Kiefer, competed in the 2012 Summer Olympic Games where she finished 5^th.

Along with Fencing, Kiefer plans on studying pre-med at Notre Dame.