Kieran Lumb ran 50 seconds faster than he did at this time last year to win the opening cross-country meet of the Vancouver public school season Tuesday at Quilchena Park.
The Grade 12 Lord Byng student ran the 4.5-kilometre course in 14 minutes and 23.11 seconds, a considerable improvement from the 15:13.33 he recorded last season on the same course when he finished second.
Lumb and Kitsilano's Thomson Harris kept pace and pushed each other over the terrain until the Lord Byng Grey Ghost took a slim lead to win by five seconds.
Van Tech's Brandon Kaine finished third. Simeo Pont won the meet last year but was not in the field this week.
This is the first of four league races. The zone final will be Oct. 28 at Fraserview. The B.C. Championships will be held Nov. 7 at Jericho Beach Park.
In the girls race, Kendra Lewis turned heads when she cleared a tremendous swath for herself and beat the pack by 35 seconds.
The Grade 8 Van Tech runner won the 3.5 km race in 16:08.40.
Bridgett Baziw, also in Grade 8, came second for Lord Byng in 16:43.81. Grade 10 Kitsilano runner Manon Plovier finished third.
The top six finishers were junior racers, and only three seniors finished in the top 15. Last year's zone champion, Lord Byng's Callie Charlton, now in Grade 12, is sidelined with an injury.
The B.C. cross-country championships were the first in the province to run a distinct event for junior athletes, students in Grades 8, 9 and 10.
