Jake Smith signed off in style in his last appearance in the Butterfield Mile by winning the 17 and under boys (high school) race on Friday night.

Smith dominated the field of 15 to cross the line in 4min 31.93sec, a huge improvement from his time of 4:44.23 to win the same race a year ago and a little over four seconds behind the record set by Tyler Butterfield (4min 27.30) in 1999,

“I gave it my all and didn’t quite get the record,” the 17-year-old told The Royal Gazette.

“I was aiming to beat Tyler Butterfield’s record set in 1999, but I just came short of it. Huge respect to Tyler Butterfield, it was phenomenal that he did a run like that in 1999.

“Initially I wasn't aiming to break this record, but after my race last year someone encouraged me to go for it. When I first heard, I thought it was crazy because I couldn't believe I could even come this close.

“The first time I did this race was in 2018 when I got the last qualifying slot. I find it quite inspiring how I went all the way from qualifying last to coming first for two years in a row.

“A big thank you to everyone for coming out, the support for this race is amazing. The competition was also great, well done to all the athletes.

“I’m also doing the 10K and the half-marathon. I’m not expecting much in those races because I’m more of a middle-distance runner, that’s why I excel in the mile.”

Second was Jackson Langley in 4:48.87 with Dylan Eiselt securing a spot on the podium in 4:48.98

Langley, who still has one year left in high school, applauded his Warwick schoolmate for setting the pace.

“It was a super-fast race and Jake just went for it as we turned by the flagpoles,” he said.

“He was just gone and for the rest of the race, I was trying to catch up with him. I had Khari Sharrieff helping me and Dylan Eiselt pushing me on our way back, so it was a great race.

“Jake is a phenomenal runner and he’s in great shape right now. I don’t think I had any chance of beating him because it was quite clear he’s at a different level.”

Eiselt, the youngest in the top three, was delighted to keep up with his national triathlon team-mates.

“The race was really amazing,” the 14-year-old said. “Coming back from the barricade I realised that it was already fast-paced, but I saw it as a chance for me to get on the podium.”

Carina Bortoli, who finished fourth in the 17 and under girls race in 2024, also signed off from the event with a win in 5:54.30. Amaris Munya secured second in a time of 6:02.13, while Kelise Wade completed the top three in 6:02.62.

“This is my last year and it’s a nice way to wrap it up by winning,” Bortoli said.

“I was really focused on my running this year, got more runs and track sessions that helped me a lot.”

In the girls 13 and under (middle school) race, Naomi MacGuinness cantered to victory in her first year in the age group with an impressive 5:29.23. She was followed by Riana Robinson and Sofia Leclerc.

“It feels great to win,” MacGuinness said. “I was a lot younger but it was really fun running against older girls. I hurt my knee so I didn’t want to go too fast. I tried to stick with them and it got better, so I just went off.”

There was a close finish in the boys 13 and under race between Rory Shepherd of Saltus Grammar School and Warwick Academy’s Jens Drea. Shepherd clinched victory in 5:18.96 less than a second ahead of Drea in 5:19.16, with Timothy Pearman finishing thirs.

“Jens is usually faster than me so I stuck with him because I know he’s evasive,” the winner said. “I just made sure I ran faster right at the end to get the win.”

The runner-up was pleased with his effort on the night, as he prepares to go up to the 17 years and under age group.

“It was really close and I can’t believe he got me by a couple of milliseconds,” Drea said.

“I just did my best and was leading for most of the race. I knew he wasn’t going to let me go that easily, and it came down to that sprint at the end.”

Khaleef Daley of Francis Patton took the honours in the boys 10 and under (primary school) race with last year’s winner, Adrian Myers from Saltus, settling for second and his schoolmate Nolan Horrobin finishing third.

Aalirah Daniels, from Harrington Sound, won the girls 10 and under contest followed by Yara Muhammad and Peggy Forster.