Sixteen-year-old twins Arran and Oliver Hope say they took up fencing because it looked ‘fun’ at their old prep school.

Now the former students of Deal’s Northbourne Park School take the sport a lot more seriously.

The talented duo, who now attend The King’s School in Canterbury, will represent Ireland in four European Junior World Cup events.

The first event will be in Luxembourg in September, followed by Greece (October), Slovakia (November), and Switzerland (January).

The Hopes qualified for Ireland through their mother’s Irish heritage.

They received news of their selection in an email and while they were both thrilled, they were far too modest to spread the word on social media.

Arran, who was born a minute earlier than Oliver, said: “We were both really excited but we didn’t want to make a fuss about it.

“We prefer to just get on with our training and focus on doing the best we can in the sport.”

The twins, who both finished third in Irish nationals last year, started fencing when they were nine.

Read the full story in today's East Kent Mercury