Looking at Uncle George Nelson on Friday, you might not have guessed he was once one of the fastest runners in the country.
But looking around the clubrooms at Rumbalara, seeing the photos, medals and ribbons, it didn’t take much to put two and two together.
Nearly 50 people turned out as the 88-year-old Uncle George was honoured with a new pair of shoes as recognition for his blazing a trail for First Nations athletes across Victoria for four decades.
He amassed 37 wins and placings on the pro running circuit as a runner and trainer, including winning the Bendigo Mile and Stawell 880 in 1957, back-to-back Yarroweyah 75 and Gift wins in 1961 and the Echuca 75 yards in 1963.
He kept running until the 1990s, lining up at races in Stawell and across the state well into his 50s, and trained champion runners across the region including former News sport editor Noel Hussey, who won the famed Gift in 1964.
After being wheeled up to the front to accept the shoes, you couldn’t wipe the smile off Uncle George’s face.
“I’ve never got this many people all together in my lifetime like this,” he said.
He didn’t expect the event or the shoes, and said the footwear was “very pretty”.
“I think they came a little bit too late for me,” he said laughing.
“Hope Sweeney made me a tailor-made pair of spikes for me back in the day, they were beautiful.
“They were kangaroo hide, kangaroo sole, kangaroo leather; they were beautiful, but so are these.”
Aside from Hussey, Nelson trained winners across all professional distances from 70 metres through to the mile.
As an athlete he won or placed in 31 professional races on the rich Victorian athletic league circuit and proved his versatility by winning races from 70m through to a mile.
His biggest wins came at the Stawell Gift where he took out the 880 yards in 1957 and the 220 yards in 1961. He also took out the prestigious Bendigo Mile in 1957 and the 1963 Maryborough Gift.
Born on the Cummeragunga mission on the banks of the Murray River in 1933, Nelson is part of a long line of talented sportspeople to come out of the area, including the likes of VFL footballer and athlete Sir Doug Nicholls and 1928 Stawell Gift winner Lynch Cooper.
Yorta Yorta leader and former athlete Paul Briggs believes Nelson is one of the best athletes to come out of the small Murray River mission.
“George was a terrific athlete and we acknowledged not only his contribution to professional athletics but also the fact that he is the last of the great athletes and leaders from that era,” Mr Briggs said.
“It’s also a recognition of the invincible spirit of the Yorta Yorta men that came off that mission. Fourteen gift winners came from Cummeragunga, as well as boxing champions, cyclists and footballers.”
Mr Briggs believes more should be written about what could be the finest First Nations sporting nursery in Australia.
“Its an unheralded story and highlights Cummeragunga as a rich breeding ground for sportspeople, with its legacy still echoing in the AFL now,” he said.
“The issue is that it’s never been properly researched or understood.”
Mr Briggs has been heavily involved in a new First Nations education centre currently being built at Rumbalara and is excited about the opportunity to celebrate local Indigenous history.
“It’s an opportunity to not only provide skills to the local Indigenous people but it’s also a chance to remind ourselves of our history. In partnership with the Melbourne University it will be an academy of sport, health and education and will be ready for student intake in 2024,” Mr Briggs said.
“This new academy will not only put Indigenous knowledge into the curriculum but it will address skills shortages in the local area, which is a positive move for the entire Shepparton community.”
A winner of three professional races himself, Mr Briggs felt the acknowledgement of George Nelson was in fact a celebration of the role that the First Nations community played in professional athletics.
“Pro athletics was a key sport for our young people many years ago and particularly those from the Cummeragunga mission, and we need to remember their contribution,” Mr Briggs said.