Keeping active is paying huge dividends for a Waiopehu College student and multi-sport athlete Courtney Fitzgibbon.
The 13-year-old from Waitarere Beach stunned a large field of runners twice her age when winning the Porirua Grand Traverse mountain run last weekend.
Fitzgibbon stood out at the start line. She was by far the youngest competitor there. She stood out at the finish line, too, crossing the line first among 60 senior mountain runners, a majority aged between 20 and 39.
The 18km Porirua Grand Traverse mountain run is a gruelling event and recognised as a true test of fitness.
Her time of 1:50:21 was nearly two minutes ahead of the second placed runner, and five minutes ahead of the third-placed runner.
Fitzgibbon has a natural base fitness that comes from competing in a variety of active sports including open water swimming races, some of which are 2.5km long and demand a good training ethic just to be able to compete.
She also belongs to the Levin Harriers Club, sneaks in the odd cross-fit training session, and enjoys running off-road through Waitarere Beach Forest, and hill runs like the popular treks up Trig Rd, and Heights Rd, in her spare time.
The swimming helps with the running, and vice versa. She also placed second overall - against the boys too - in her school cross country run this year, and was third in the Manawatū-Whanganui cross country championships in July.
Fitzgibbon also plays on the wing for the First XI Soccer Team at Waiopehu College, a position that demands plenty of running, and she was also currently training to be a lifeguard for the Levin Waitarere Beach Surf Lifesaving club.
Courtney Fitzgibbon, 13, crosses the line first in the 18km Porirua Grand Traverse event at the weekend.
And if that wasn't enough to keep her busy, in her spare time she enjoyed wakeboarding and was placed second at the New Zealand nationals last year.
Entirely self-motivated, Fitzgibbon was up early again yesterday morning for another training session at Horowhenua Aquatic Centre.
In winning the Porirua Grand Traverse, she has gained entry to a half-marathon in Blenheim in May.
