The duo win the senior race in Saturday’s UK Cross Challenge final in Nottingham.
Wollaton Hall was re-launched for the British Inter-County Cross-Country Championships, which in the men’s case celebrated 100 years of competition. In the senior race, James Kingston and Jess Gibbon came out on top, but Saturday (March 7) saw athletes from multiple age groups battle it out for the Great Britain Cross Challenge honours.
The race started with the para-athletes event, but with just nine boys and one girl competing, plus the under-11s, over a mud-free run. Only 25 boys and 16 girls graduated there, leaving many to question the wisdom of having that age group at this level.
Senior men
Their race was the final race of the day and it was Kingston who set most of the pace, although Jacob Cann also showed a display at the front at the end of the short first 2km lap.
It was tough out there after a couple of dozen runners soon gave up on the rest, but Kingston’s pressure soon showed and after three laps and four laps at 7km it was down to just two as Ken was the only one.
Richard Slade led the mid-race but was 50 meters down and eventually fourth place McMillan another 80 meters into the final lap. His Yorkshire won the team gold medals.
Kingston said: “I think I’ve done most of the work and after 12 weeks of 100 miles a week you know you’re strong.”
He then reflected on his loss to Hugo Milner in the English Nationals at Sedgefield, saying he was “disappointed” with the defeat, but added: “I now have six national and inter-county medals in the last few years.”
Today’s cross-city victory took the 24-year-old’s English title back to 2023, with silver and bronze in the same two events.
Kingston concluded by saying: “I’ll take a week off and then I’ll go into (road) transfers.”
Men. 1 J Kingston (Kent) 29:15; 2 J Cann (Sx) 29:32; 3 R Slade (Bucks) 30:02; 4 A McMillan (Yorks) 30;17; 5 E Buck (Notts) 30:33; 6 C Charleston (Exit) 30:37
TEAM (6 goals). 1 Yorks194; 2 Surrey 217; 3 N East 258; 5 N Ireland 261; 5 Lincolnshire 336; 6 G Manchester 384
TEAM (9 goals). 1 N East 520; 2 Lincolnshire 785; 3 G Manchester 787
Senior women
Gibbon comfortably retained her senior women’s title and did so in similar fashion to last year, although the margin of victory was narrower.
The Reading 29-year-old was content to sit in a three-man pack alongside Eleanor Curran and Niamh Bridson-Hubbard before breaking free on the last lap.
Kate O’Neill went on a trip earlier, but soon lost contact.
These three seemed to take turns at the front, but it was the dominant Gibbon who looked the most at ease.
Then, as in 2025, it was a last-lap effort that took victory over Curran and Bridson-Hubbard.
Gibbon then reflected on his fourth place finish at the English National Championship. “I had convinced myself I had an injury and wasn’t doing too well at the Nationals, which was a bit of a bummer, but I didn’t.”
Then, speaking about intercity countries, he added:
Back in an isolated fourth place for most of the race, Niamh Brown led the Surrey team in total dominance as the yellow vets sealed their six points in the top 30 positions as the rest of the circuit also finished below 200 points.
Women. 1 J Gibbon (Oxon) 27:26; 2 E Curran (Leeds) 27:33; 3 N Bridson-Hubbard (Kent) 27:36; 4 N Brown (Surrey) 28:06; 5:00 K O’Neill (Ex) 28:21; 6 R Roberts (NI) 28:26
TEAM: 1 Surrey 100; 2 NI 303; 3 Yorkshire 307; 4 N East 327; 5 Lancashire 328; 6 Cornwall 333
Young athletes (men)
Many of the favorites took home gold medals and the first of the inter-county events to be recognized was the junior men’s event, where Alex Lennon won the gold medal.
The early leader was Yorkshire’s Jack Sanderson as 11 runners dropped out after two miles, but the pack soon thinned out until Lennon and Sanderson were left to contest the third and final lap.
Lennon then sprinted up the final hill to the famous Wollaton Hall before a celebratory run to the finish and victory for the Surrey 17-year-old, who won the under-17 event here last year.
He was competing in only his third race of the year after making the trip to World Cross Country eight days earlier and podiuming in 14:22 in the 5km road race.
Speaking about the early pace, Lennon said: During the course, he added that it was, in fact, “sticky in places.”
Still in third, Jack Sanderson led a Scottish one-two in the team competition as the West of Scotland topped the East of Scotland ahead of Lennon’s Surrey.
Another race where the favorite prevailed was the under-17 men’s event, where English national champion Rory Barclay-Watt again lost to Joseph Skanes, third at Sedgefield.
Speaking about his tactics, the 17-year-old said: “I was hoping to hit the hills hard.”
This effectively meant that the Devon runner was in control throughout. He said he is now planning a track season based on distances between 3000m and 5000m.
The team race was another win for the West of Scotland here, despite Skenes’ Kent also third with Joseph Hill.
In the under-15 boys’ race, it was tough for England national team winner Theo Creed to just Taylor Thorne-Watts. He said: “It was only after going up the last hill and rounding the bend that I got it.”
The Surrey runner won the under-13 title here last year.
Luis Da Silva was another winner and favorite for the England national team and was probably the tallest runner in the field and led the under-13 boys event, later saying he “expected to win”.
U20 Men. 1 A Lennon (Sy) 24:34; 2 J Sanderson (Yorks) 24:39; 3 J Alexander W Scot) 24:57; 4 G Benyan (Camb) 25:04; 5 S Wilson (Gluck) 25:10; 6 C Collins (Dors) 25:15
TEAM: 1 Scotland West 57; 2 East of Scotland 81; 3 Surrey 82
U17: 1 R Barclay-Watt (Dev) 18:48; Jay Skanes (Kent) 18:59; 3 Jay Hill (Kent) 19:03; 4 F Rowe (Ex) 19:08; 5 D Kinard (W Scotland) 19:15; 6 J Ireland (Chesh) 19:16
TEAM: 1 Scotland West 75; 2 Yorkshire 105; 3 Suffolk 114
U15: 1 T Creed (Sy) 13:19; 2 T Thorn-Watts (Sx) 13:20; 3 J Osuji (Chesh) 13:38; 4 N Greig (S Wales) 13:43; 5 J Summers (Herts) 13:44; 6 M Lamy (Mx) 13:44
TEAM: 1 Middx 44; 2 Surrey 63; 3 E Scotland 85
U13: 1 L Da Silva (Mx) 10:40; 2 P Friedrich (Hants) 10:45; 3 G Fisher (Chesh) 10:53
TEAM: 1 Kent 77; 2 S Wells 83; 3 Crime 109
Young athletes (female)
The women’s under 20 race was hotly contested between Ava James and Katie Paye before James won from the final hill.
The Sussex runner was ahead in the early stages and held Pai clear of the rest of the field before opening up in the latter part of the race.
James seemed surprised by her victory and said, “Pye had a really good race and I was just hoping for a top 10” – and this after third place in the English Nationals.
Back in third here, National runner-up Maisie Bellwood was first at home for third-placed Yorkshire, but along with James Sussex both comfortably beat sixth-placed Eva Jha’s Cheshire.
Beth Lewis was another favourite, coming out on top in the women’s under 17 event. The Humber runner came home 20 seconds clear of Kitty Scott, who nevertheless guided her Surrey quartet to team gold.
However, the early leader was Sophia Chapman before three other runners got away. Lewis was there with Scott and Sabrina Coppola-Johanssen before Eleanor Foster joined the fun.
However, it was Lewis who opened up a big lead on the final lap, leaving Scott trailing behind. He said: “I knew it was going to be a tough ride, but you keep going.”
In the penultimate race of the day, Under 15s Gabrielle Pinder scored a comfortable win over Isabella Buchanan as Olivia Lee tied for third with Summer Smith.
Pinder said. “I had to go most of the way and I was hoping I could finish it.”
The sure favorite on the day was U13 girls winner Maddison Kindler who, like Da Silva, was the tallest runner in the boys’ event and duly retained her title, but was runner-up to Sienna Lavigne who led Yorkshire to their second team title.
U20 women. 1 A James (Sx) 21:40; 2 K Pye (Sy) 21:46; 3 M Bellwood (Yorks) 22:08; 4 I Edwards (Hants) 22:18; 5 E Wells (Dors) 22:22; 6 E Jha (Cesh) 22:34
TEAM: 1 Cheshire 69; 2 Sussex 88; 3 Yorkshire 90
U17: 1 B Lewis (Humb) 18:05; 2 K Scott (Sy) 18:25; 3 E Foster (Dev) 18:42; 4 S Coppola-Johansen (Sy) 18:48; 5 D Connor (Sx) 18:50; 6 S Chapman (Bucks) 18:51
TEAM: 1 Surrey 32; 2 Yorkshire 80; 3 Sussex 102
U15: 1 G Pinder (NE) 14:48; 2 I Buchanan (Sx) 14:57; 3 O Lee (Derby) 15:02; 4 S Smith (Exit) 15:02; 5 P Guest (Sy) 15:14; 6 C Whysall (Notts) 15:23
TEAM: 1 Yorkshire 54; 2 Essex 82; 3 Surrey 100
U13: 1 M Kindler (Ex) 11:37; 2 S Lavine (Yorks) 11:50; 3 S Davies (Mx) 11:54
TEAM: 1 Yorkshire 61; 2 Middx 73; 3 Surrey 86
