Congratulations to Upper Sixth Bede's pupil Benedict Noon, who came in fourth place at the U18 Sussex Schools Cross Country Competition, which qualified him to compete at the English Nationals in March.

Aside from being a talented athlete, Benedict, who is a prefect in Knights House, is one of the school's top academics. Bi-lingual and part of the school's Oxbridge Mentoring programme for Chemistry, the Eastbourne local has already received university offers from York, Warwick and Exeter, and is waiting to hear from Durham.

His tutor, Bede's Head of Scholars Mr Vaux, said, "This is an incredibly accomplishment from a young man who epitomises the Bede's spirit. Benedict works incredibly hard at everything he does, and he succeeds both in and outside of the classroom. He runs, swims and cycles distances that make my head spin, yet never misses a deadline. His teachers adore him, and he's a true role model. I'm incredibly proud of his ongoing successes, as is the school in general."

Benedict said of his success, "I was really surprised. The people I beat in the race are people I have been competing against for many years. It felt a bit strange, coming to school in the morning, then changing out of my suit to run in the afternoon! Still, I finished with a big smile on my face, then went home and did a bit of Physics."