Interview with Matthew Stonier (OJKS): English Schools’ Cross Country Champion
Last Saturday should have been our annual Sports Dinner, an evening where we thank our Upper School pupils for their contributions to sporting life at Junior King’s.
As well as enjoying a delicious dinner, our senior sportspeople would have had the chance to hear from a speaker, usually a figure in the sporting community who could provide inspiration to our young sportsmen and women.
This year, the speaker would have been Matthew Stonier, a former Junior King’s pupil currently in his final year at the King’s School, whose phenomenal form this year has seen his cross country sporting career take off spectacularly, with six major victories and two national titles under his belt.
In their Wellness session last Friday, Upper School pupils were invited to watch a recorded interview with Matt in lieu of his Sports Dinner speech. With Head of Girls’ Games, Miss Scott-Kilvert, in the interviewer’s seat, Matt answered questions on his sporting memories at Junior King’s, talked school sports scholarships (and why they aren’t necessarily the be all and end all if you have your sights set on sporting greatness), his training regime in and out of school and much more.
From his early Sports Days and whole school cross country events at Junior King’s to county and national success, Matt’s achievements are a testament to his focus, hard work and his dedication to personal development. Matt’s advice to our Year 8 pupils? ‘Make the most of every opportunity you get […]. Realise that, at the age of 13 you’re not going to have peaked. There’s many years to come to get better.’
Click here to watch the full interview with Matt.