Talented Wanganui athlete Geordie Beamish has the world at his feet with the potential to become an international star at this stage of his young career.
The Year 13 Wanganui Collegiate student is unbeaten this year with his last loss at the Oceania Championships in Tasmania in August last year.
Coach Alec McNab, who has trained many talented athletes over more than 30 years, believes Beamish has the class to become a world-beater if he decides to put his mind to it.
The 17-year-old's recent achievements include winning the New Zealand Schools Championship 3000m, beating the favourite in the process and a week later taking out the Junior John Walker Mile, eclipsing the schools' record.
Beamish has also won the New Zealand Under-20 1500m, where he broke fellow Collegiate School runner Tom Osborne's longstanding record.
And last Sunday at the North Island Secondary Schools Championship in Masterton Beamish won the 1500m in a time less than half a second outside the record.
"At Masterton he won the 1500m title, running inside his own Collegiate record, and was within half a second of the existing North Island record," Mcnab said yesterday.
"A day earlier he won the 3000m ... his time of 8:23.15 was inside the North Island record and bettered his own Collegiate record."
McNab, who is not one to overstate the potential of his athletes, said Beamish was "the real deal".
"It's the way he is winning his races - many of them have been by 10 or 20 seconds and they're big margins. His brother Hugo is also a talented runner who has recently returned from the United States. He is recovering from an injury at the moment, but he won many national titles at Geordie's age.
"I would have to say that Geordie is tracking his brother's outstanding performances at the same age.
"It's dangerous to say whether Geordie is the next Nick Willis or John Walker, but I have trained a lot of very good distance runners and I can think of none better than Geordie at this stage of his career. But really it's up to him how far he wants to take it. He certainly has the class and the head for the very top level."
Beamish admits he is unsure about his future.
"I really don't know at this stage if I want to make a career out of it, but I am enjoying it and excited to be named in the national training squad," he said yesterday.
McNab confirmed Beamish had been named in the training squad.
On the same day, fellow Wanganui Collegiate athlete Max Attwell was named in the New Zealand Oceania team to compete in Rarotonga in June.
"Max has continued his outstanding run of form that has won him a place in the NZ junior team to the Oceania Championships in Rarotonga," McNab said. "He was second in the 400m at the North Island Secondary Schools in Masterton last weekend, edging out his teammate Josh Ledger."
"He ran in the Collegiate 4 x 400m team that finished third for Wanganui against regional opposition, and capped off an outstanding month by competing in his first major 300m hurdles.
"He won the event in a huge personal best of 40.36s and in the process defeated teammate and race favourite Charlie McCartin, who finished second."
Attwell will compete in the octathlon (eight-discipline event), the 400m and the relay events in Rarotonga.