One of the great elements of the Boston Marathon weekend is the BAA Invitational race series that takes place this year on Saturday, April 19, in Copley Square.

The Invitational Mile for high schoolers and Middle School 1K races feature boys and girls from the cities and towns of the Boston Marathon course. Young runners also take part in the B.A.A. Relay Challenge.

A separate Invitational Mile on Saturday is for professional runners from around the world.

In addition to being part of an exciting competition, student-athletes get some great swag.

Here are the bios of Wellesley’s young runners, provided by the Boston Athletic Association (if any proud moms/dads/caretakers read this and want to share pics from the event with us, please do: theswellesleyreport@gmail.com

Middle School runners:

Xavier Cortis, Wellesley, Grade 8 – 1.5 mile PB: 9:01. Wellesley Middle School. Proud of setting a new mile PR during the 2024 track season. Enjoys long runs with friends, racing the 10K, baking and cooking.

Georg Heerdegen Jepsen, Wellesley, Grade 8 – 5K PB: 21:00. Wellesley Middle School. Focused on constantly improving his kick; plays soccer, enjoys the 5K distance and telling stories.

Anna Heerdegen Jepsen, Wellesley, Grade 6 – 1.5 Mile PB: 5 minutes. Wellesley Middle School. Beyond running does gymnastics, can do a roundoff back handspring, and enjoys jumping on her trampoline. Brother is also racing the Middle School Boys 1K.

Maddie Mantak, Wellesley, Grade 7 – 1.5 Mile PB: 10:23. Wellesley Middle School. Enjoy running and can play the ukulele; proudest moment is finishing second in a cross country meet.

High school runners:

Ben Aronson, Wellesley, Mile PB: 4:32 — Wellesley High School, Grade 12. Proudest athletic accomplishment is breaking 5 minutes in the mile freshman year. Hidden talent is playing chess, and his biggest fan is his mom.

Brian Mix, Wellesley, Mile PB: 4:37.90 — Wellesley High School, Grade 12. Favorite distance to race is the 800m. Other than running, he enjoys rock climbing. He’e run 1:27 for 600m.

Jolie Chen, Wellesley, Mile PB: 6:33.9 — Wellesley High School, Grade 11. Proudest accomplishment is setting a 21:26 5K PR at the Bay State Conference Championships. Does 6 styles of dance and biggest fan is the Wellesley High distance team!

Emily Bannon, Wellesley, Mile PB: 5:37 — Wellesley High School, Grade 12. Proud of running a 4×8 leg while injured and not getting passed. Hidden talent is scooping ice cream perfectly, and favorite fan is older sister.