After a triumphant return to the Goulburn Valley sporting calendar last year the George Nelson Shepparton Gift is back for another athletic showcase in 2024.
The event returned to Shepparton Showgrounds in March 2023 after more than 20 years away, but there is a change of timeslot with this year’s running set for this Sunday, January 28.
Hundreds of athletes will don the gear to tear up the track, with the men’s and women’s Gift races marking the day’s showpiece events.
The main Gift event is named after Yorta Yorta athletic icon George Nelson.
It runs from noon to 7pm on Sunday and comprises one leg of the Victorian athletic series that culminates with Australia’s premier sprinting carnival, the Stawell Gift.
Nathan Riali shapes up as an elite men’s contender for the 100m feature event, having recorded a blistering 10.54 second pace less than a fortnight ago in Wollongong.
Gift committee president Gerard Adams says the occasion is a significant stepping stone for runners with aspirations at the top level.
“There’s a half-metre bonus available at Stawell to the winners of the men’s and women’s Gift races, so that’s a good attraction for the runners,” Adams said.
“It encourages them to come to places like Shepparton and Wangaratta to run and earn that bonus for Easter.
“About 400 senior entries are in from the professional running and sprinting community.
“We’re looking to integrate our little athletics entries with some of the senior races so that we can have similar times for the podiums.”
Naturally, one may wonder about Shepparton’s event running so far off the Stawell occasion after they were close together on last year’s calendar.
One factor was Easter arriving earlier than usual, but the timing of another meeting also played a role.
“We are doing a double-header with Wangaratta, who is running their event on Saturday the 27th,” Adams said.
“We could not go through with that big March date again, so the Victorian Athletic League moved Shepparton back to the Australia Day weekend.
“We had to talk it through with our Indigenous friends, but we were able to get an agreement to run it on that day.
“It’s just important that we acknowledge George Nelson and not forget his name and his contributions to athletics in the Indigenous community.”
As for the on-track participation, Adams notes that a surge in junior registrations offsets a slight drop-off in senior entries.
“We’ve had a big increase in our junior applications; we probably only had 10 or 12 juniors last year, but now we’ve got 40 coming from all parts of Victoria,” Adams said.
“We understand some mums and dads have to return to Melbourne with school starting the next day, so we’ve had a drop in our over-35 races.
“Having that junior increase is great, though.”
Adams also paid tribute to the facilities, offering a glimpse into the potential future of Gift events.
“The council has done an amazing job with the showgrounds,” Adams said.
“The way they’ve got the grass so flat and presentable after things like Springnats and the Shepparton Show, it’s just fantastic.
“We’ve got a unique opportunity to put people very close to the action, with marquees where spectators can be within just a few metres of the athletes.
“We understand there’s an investment with new lights for the showgrounds, so we’d like to run this event at night and turn it into a bit of a party atmosphere.”