James Kingston (runner)

James Kingston (born 22 January 2002) is a British cross country runner. He won the 2023 English National Cross Country Championships and represented Great Britain at the 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships.^[1]

From Kent, and a member of Tonbridge AC, he won the senior men's title in the Kent County Cross-Country Championships at Brands Hatch in Janaury 2023.^[2][3] He won his first south of England cross cross title later that month.^[4] The following month, he won the English National Cross Country Championships, the first Tonbridge athlete ever to do so.^[5]

Kingston won the South of England cross country championships again in Beckenham in January 2024.^[6] Kingston represented Great Britain at the 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships in Belgrade, Serbia in March 2024.^[7]

Kingston placed 16th overall in the men's U23 race as the Great Britain team won the gold medal at the 2024 European Cross Country Championships in Antalya, Turkey.^[8][9][10] In January 2025, Kingston placed second representing England at the Home Countries International.^[11] He was runner-up to Logan Rees at the Leeds Cross Challenge the following month.^[12] In October 2025, he placed second in the individual race and won the team event representing England in Roeselare in the Belgium Cross Cup.^[13]

Kingston won the Kent cross country championships for the fourth consecutive year and also won the South of England cross country championships in Beckenham, in January 2026.^[14][15] Kingston placed third in the men's senior race at the London Cross Challenge at Parliament Hill on 7 February 2026.^[16] Kingston was runner-up to Hugo Milner at the 2026 English National Cross Country Championships in Sedgefield. ^[17] On 7 March, he won the title at the UK Athletics Cross Challenge Final and UK Inter Counties Championships in Nottingham ahead of Jacob Cann.^[18]