A BIRKDALE 12-year-old has outshone his age group opponents at the Gold Coast marathon, finishing the four-kilometre Garmin junior dash first.
Zane Pearce ran the race in just 13.31 minutes, making him the fastest of 114 boys, aged between 11 and 12 years, entered in the dash on June 30.
The Iona College year seven student also placed seventh overall against all boys aged under 15 years.
Zane’s father, Ellis Pearce, said his son loved training, with Epsom salts always kept at the family home to help Zane recuperate after races.
“Most times after a hard race or training session, he gets sore heavy legs,” Mr Pearce said.
“He recovers from this with Epsom salt baths and leg massages.”
Mr Pearce said his son would represent metropolitan east in the Queensland state school cross country championships later this month.
“He loves to train hard but really thrives in the build up and competition of race day,” Mr Pearce said.
A Gold Coast marathon spokesman said more than 1,500 runners competed in this year’s junior dash races.
The marathon, which attracted more than 27,000 participants from 51 countries, was won by Kenyan contestants Ruth Chebitok and Kenneth Mungara, who each raced in 2.24.49 and 2.09.49, respectively.
Zane’s running coach, Ben Luscombe from Starfish Fitness, described Zane as a top runnner, who also excelled at other sports, including triathlon and cricket.
“He’s a mentor for his own peers and is always helping out with other squad members,” Mr Luscombe said.
“He always take on constructive criticism.”
The 41st Gold Coast Marathon will be held on the weekend of 6-7 July 2019.
For more information about the race, visit here.