Paris 2024: James Preston’s 800m Record Sees Him Named To New Zealand Team For Paris 2024

It’s been a big week for Wellington runner James Preston. On Sunday morning NZT, the 27-year-old broke the late Sir Peter Snell’s NZ record in the 800m. Two days later he woke up to confirmation he’d been named to the New Zealand Team for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

“This is something I’ve been working towards for a long time,” said Preston.

“It’s really exciting to get the opportunity to wear the fern on that Olympic stage and get to showcase the effort my team has put in during the build up.”

Preston clocked a blistering 1:44.04s to win the men’s 800m at the Merck Running Festival meet in Pfungstadt, Germany on Sunday morning (NZT). The time eclipsing Snell’s 62-year-old New Zealand record, and then world record mark of 1:44.30s. The time also surpassing the Olympic entry standard.

“The (Olympic) entry standard is the main thing for me with the record being a bonus. Everything has been geared up in terms of trying to qualify, but to be able to do that makes our plan for the next couple of months a wee bit easier and less stressful around the build-up,” said Preston post-race.

“This performance sets me up for the next couple of months. We aren’t as focused on running the standard right now, so hopefully I’ll get in some more competitions and run a wee bit faster.

“In terms of Snell’s record, he did so much for middle-distance running in New Zealand the best way to honour what he did was to try and better it, so to be able to do that is amazing. I’m hoping that someone will come along and break my record one day and better what I’ve done.”

The 2024 campaign has been a breakout year for Preston. In March, he ran a NZ 800m indoor record of 1:47.59 at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow. Later that month he made a huge breakthrough to climb to number two on the all-time NZ lists, running 1:44.87 to win the New Zealand national title in Wellington – and also come within 0.17 of the Olympic entry standard mark.

NZOC CEO Nicki Nicol extended her congratulations to Preston.

“We’re absolutely thrilled for James following a brilliant run during the weekend,” said Nicol.

“It’s great to have him named to the team and we wish him all the best as he puts the final touches on his Olympic campaign.”

Preston is an engineer and is coached by Evan Cooper. The men’s 800m heats at Paris 2024 will be held on August 7th, with finals to follow on the 9th and 10th.

Athlete Bio:

Wellington’s James Preston is a middle-distance runner specializing in the 800m. He first made his mark on the global stage when setting a New Zealand U20 record at the 2016 World U20 Championships in Poland, running 1:48.06.

In 2019, Preston finished sixth in the 800m at the World University Games in Naples. He claimed his first national senior 800m title in 2021 and ran a personal best of 1:45.30 in Germany in 2022. In 2024, he set a New Zealand indoor record of 1:47.59 at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow.

Preston’s crowning achievement came when he broke Sir Peter Snell’s 62-year-old national 800m record with a time of 1:44.04 at the Merck Running Festival in Germany, securing his spot for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Preston balances his athletics career with his work as an engineer and is coached by Evan Cooper.

About The New Zealand Team for Paris 2024

In July and August 2024, New Zealand will take on the world at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Around 190 New Zealand Team athletes will compete at the Games, with the stunning city of Paris set to host 10,500 athletes from 206 nations.

With competition taking place at the Palace of Versaille, beneath the Eiffel Tower, inside Stade de France, and around landmarks such as Les Invalides, Place de la Concorde, Hotel de Ville and along the Seine, the Games are expected to be a spectacular event.

The Zealand Team is once again set to shine in sports from equestrian, to rowing, rugby sevens,
swimming, canoe sprint, sailing, athletics, cycling and more, while New Zealanders can check out the action in incredible new urban sports including skateboarding, sport climbing, breaking and 3x3 basketball.

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