Vinco Classics: Alex Lennon storms to victory at 2025 ESAA Cross Country Championships

Rewatch Alex Lennon’s imperious victory in the senior boys’ race at the 2025 English Schools’ Athletics Association Cross Country Championships in West Sussex. 

When the best young athletes in England head to Liverpool for the ESAA Cross Country Championships later this month, all eyes will be on Alex Lennon.

The Surrey athlete has established himself as one of the most promising young runners in the country over the past year, and he will be out to defend his English Schools title at Sefton Park on March 14th. 

At last year’s event at the South of England Showground in Ardingly, Lennon didn’t just win the senior boys’ race: he won it at a canter. 

It was his first title win at English Schools, and one which would set the tone for a string of major career milestones in the following months. 

Lennon arrived at the Championships in formidable form, having won both the national and inter-counties titles in U17 cross country over the previous weeks. 

Just a few weeks before his 17th birthday, he was now out to complete a historic treble of major junior titles with victory at the ESAA Championships. 

Lennon was content to sit behind the frontrunners for much of the first half of the race, as other athletes jostled for the lead in a tightly knit pack. 

Cambridgeshire’s Jacob Trangmar got out quickest, before Hampshire’s Owen Smith muscled into the lead with some strong running through the second kilometre.

With a third of the race gone, Lennon began to move up to the front of the pack, while still allowing Smith to set the pace.

Perhaps sensing the favourite on his heels, Smith began to up the ante but failed to shake off the Surrey athlete.

Lennon stuck to the leader like a limpet, even nudging Smith in the back on the turn before the final hill. 

Then, just over a kilometre before the finish line, he made his move.

As the course looped around the final lake, Lennon raced away from Smith, quickly opening up a huge gap over the rest of the field. 

From that point on, there was no catching him, and the Surrey runner crossed the line a full five seconds ahead of the chasing pack. 

It was another impressive victory for the then 16-year-old, who went on to further success later that year. 

In December, he qualified for the European Cross Country Championships in Lagoa, finishing 15th to help Great Britain and Northern Ireland secure a team silver medal. 

That success put him in line for the World Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee, Florida a month later, where he finished an impressive 32nd in the U20 race. 

He returns to English Schools this month as one of two standout favourites alongside his GB team mate and long-term rival Michael Clark.  

You can watch Alex Lennon’s imperious victory at Ardingly in the video at the top of this page. In the build-up to this year’s event, Vinco will be posting a new classic race video every Thursday at 18:00 GMT. 

The 2026 ESAA Cross Country Championships take place at Liverpool’s Sefton Park on March 14th, and will be available to watch live exclusively on Vinco with a RunnerSpace+ subscription.