Blue Springs’ Belete chosen The Star’s All-Metro boys cross country runner of the year

Blue Springs High School senior Simon Belete’s march to the podium began only a few weeks after the completion of his sophomore season.

Tired of finishing in the middle of the pack in every cross country race, Belete figured if he wanted to get more out of his favorite sport, the training would need to become a little more rigorous. So less than a month after a 48th-place showing at the state meet in Jefferson City, Belete started running again.

He hasn’t stopped since. His work paid off: In his junior campaign, he improved from 48th to fifth at the state meet.

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