Sports fans know Stephanie Jenks as an outstanding distance runner and world-class triathlete, but the 15-year-old sophomore at Linn-Mar High School is also a top-notch student.

That's one of the reasons Jenks has decided to skip the 2013 cross country season with the Lions and sacrifice a chance to defend her state title.

Jenks will spend 10 days in London next month while competing for Team USA in the ITU Junior Elite World Triathlon Championships. She is concerned about missing that much time in school and wanted to lighten her load this semester.

Jenks will continue to train and compete with the Linn-Mar swim team, just as she did last year, but she will not run for the Linn-Mar cross country squad.

"It was a really tough decision," Jenks said Tuesday night. "We spent days on it. I knew I had to swim for sure. It was whether I'd run cross country or not."

Jenks wants to keep swimming for Linn-Mar to help reduce her times in distance events, partially with an eye on improving her swim times in the triathlon. Her biking and running times in triathlon events rank among the leaders, but her swimming time occasionally lags a little behind.

By skipping the cross country season, Jenks thinks she'll be able to concentrate on school, help the Linn-Mar swim team and prepare for her next triathlon.

"After London, I want to focus on my academics," she said. "Academics always comes before athletics."

Jenks won two distance races at the Drake Relays and won two titles at the state track meet in May. She finished second in the Junior Elite Female division with Team USA at the Pan-American triathlon championships in Brazil this summer and placed third at the USA Triathlon National Championships in Ohio.