Cross-Country: Christison strikes gold in Halswell

Homework took priority over celebrations when Hawke's Bay's latest national secondary schools crosscountry champion Bradley Christison returned to the Bay last night.

One might have expected Christison's family including his father and 2004 Coast to Coast winner George Christison to take Napier Boys' High School's Bradley out for a celebration dinner in the wake of his victory in the year nine boys 3km race at Halswell, Christchurch on Saturday. But after his direct flight from Christchurch arrived at Hawke's Bay Airport he went straight to his school hostel.

"They might make a bit of a fuss of me at dinner time in the hostel but I don't mind ... I've got plenty of homework to catch up on," Bradley said.

His winning time of 10m04s was 40 seconds outside his personal best.

"I was pretty happy with that. It was good weather for running," Bradley said.

Last year he won the year eight cross-country event at the AIMS event for intermediate school athletes in Tauranga will representing Tutira School. Bradley intends to make triathlon his main sporting focus in the future but is also eyeing the national secondary schools' road championships later in the year.

Another Bruce Smith-coached NBHS runner, year 11 15-year-old Christian Leopard finished 12th in the senior boys 6km race despite being up against 17 and 18-year-olds and eligible to race in this event for another two years.

This placing secured Leopard a berth in the New Zealand senior boys team to race against the Aussies in Hobart in August.

Napier Girls' High School's two-person senior girls team was third and their six-person senior girls team second. Their best were Holly Manning who missed a berth in the New Zealand team by one place with a 13th, Roisin Pearson, 19th, and Laura Smith, 33rd.