A two time Olympian, Tsurumine reached the 200 m breaststroke final in both Tokyo and Mexico City, but failed to come close to the medals on both attempts. Tsurumine was successful at the Universiades, winning the 200 m event in 1965, and medalling in both the 100 and 200 m competitions in 1967. The latter competition was held in Tokyo, where he was selected to be the flagbearer for his country at the opening ceremony. Having started swimming while performing military service, Tsurumine continued to be involved in the sport after retiring from competitive swimming himself. From 1969, he worked as the physical education teacher at Hiroshima Prefecture Onomichi High School, and from 1979 at Chukyo University. A large number of his swimming students went on to compete at the Olympics themselves, notably Nobutaka Taguchi, the 1972 Olympic 100 m breaststroke champion. He was also active as a coach at two World Championships and the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
Japan