Ian Wurman of Los Altos High won the first-tier prize of $50 in the Palo Alto Lions Club speaking competition. Wurman will advance to compete with other area students in tier two at the Lions regional level.

Other competitors included Naveen Kollipaya and Cindy Ramatchadirane from Los Altos High and Gil Thompson from Gunn High.

This year’s topic was “The Internet: Hero or Villain?”

The Palo Alto Lions Club, with residents from Los Altos and Los Altos Hills, encourages young students to hone their communication skills and prepare to be productive citizens.

The club sponsors an annual speaking competition for high school students with a cumulative prize of $20,000 in scholarship money.