A Tauranga Rudolf Steiner School student got the NZCT AIMS Games off to a flyer on Sunday, beating 130 other runners to claim the Year 7 title at the annual intermediate schools tournament in the city.

A first-year runner, Maia Flint said she didn't know what to expect and knew she had to go her hardest to stay in front.

Tauranga Rudolf Steiner School runner Maia Flint bolts to the front at the start of the Year 7 girls' race at the NZCT AIMS Games in Tauranga. Photo: Jamie Troughton/Dscribe Media Services.

'I possibly could have done better but I don't know,” says Flint. 'I'm happy with what I've achieved.”

Although they don't run a cross country at her school, Flint trains with her parents, who both run socially, and said that has been helpful.

Her mother, Michelle, says they often run up Mauao and Maia waits for her at the top.

'She genuinely just loves to run,” says Michelle. 'From an early age, we've had to say ‘no you can't come, you're too young'.”

Flint led from beginning to end in the opening race, finishing the tough 3km Waipuna Park course in 11minutes and 25 seconds.

Rosa Blake from Christchurch's Heaton Normal Intermediate was second, some 18 seconds back, with Isabella Richardson (St Cuthbert's College) claiming third in 11:48.

Auckland's Zane Powell took out the Year 7 boys race, proving he's the king of age-group cross country.

The 12-year old now has a winner's medal from the NZCT AIMS Games, to go with wins at the New Zealand and North Island championships.

'I thought I went pretty well,” says the Somerville Intermediate student. 'I've been training throughout the whole season.”

Going into the 1km mark, Powell was challenged by Tauranga Intermediate's Corban Crowther. Powell said he had to push really hard to shake Crowther off.

"I had to keep trying and not let him pass me," says Powell.

Tested for most of the race, Powell put some space between himself and his challengers coming up the hill at Waipuna Park around the 2km mark.

From there he managed to hold his lead and sprinted to the finish line, clocking 10:36. Crowther finished six seconds behind Powell in second, with George Lambert (Hunterville Consolidated School) a further 11 seconds behind in third.

Powell, who trains at the Pakuranga Athletic Club, took his third winners medal in as many months, winning the B12 grade 2km race at the North Island Champs in July, and the under-13 boys' 2km race at the New Zealand championships in August.

Powell's mother Kim says he's had a good season. 'He just wanted to finish it off today,” she explained.

Meanwhile, Gisborne athlete Briana Irving smashed the Year 8 cross country record - even though she almost didn't make the start gun.

Irving (Gisborne Intermediate) finished in 10:58 – a full 10 seconds faster than the 2014 record.

After the race, mum Belinda Irving said her daughter was feeling sick before the race and looked unlikely to run.

'She's actually sick,” says the proud mum. 'Honestly, at about 10.30am we didn't even know if she was going to run or not.”

Although Irving does hill sprinting in training, she still struggled to conquer a notoriously difficult hill on the Welcome Bay course.

'I was dying up that hill,” she said.

Irving beat second-placed Charli Miller from Hamilton's Fairfield Intermediate by 26 seconds and admitted it was an unexpected win by an unexpected margin.

Back in Gisborne, Irving is the only child training alongside adults. They train three-to-four times a week and Irving is pushed as hard as the adults – an experience she's convinced helped her to victory.

The talented young runner nearly had two records under her belt - at last year's AIMS Games, Irving was second behind Lucy Kokich, with both runners dipping under the record.

Will Taylor struck a blow for the South Island schools on the first day, with the Cobham Intermediate student winning the Year 8 boys' race, out-sprinting Finn Seeds (Hutt International) on the home straight.

Taylor clocked 10:24, with Seeds just four seconds adrift in the closest margin of the day. Oliver Puchner (Tauranga Intermediate) was third in 10:39.

Tauranga Intermediate had further success in the event-ending championship relay, regaining the title they last held in 2012.

Winners for the last two years, Otumoetai, had to settle for second in the 12km, six-person relay, clocking 41:34 to Tauranga's 40:57. Auckland's Buckland's Beach was third in 41:50.