THE future of Wimmera sprinting will be on show at the weekend during the prestigious Stawell Gift carnival.
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Four young sprinters from the region will compete in the Woolworth’s Stawell Gift or the Australia Post Women’s Gift at Stawell’s Central Park.
Ararat sprinter Sarah Blizzard hopes to finish one place higher than last year.
The 18-year-old was runner-up to women’s gift winner Holly Dobbyn, of Ballarat, missing out by just 0.133 of a second.
Blizzard, who trains under Ararat coach Marcus Cooper, has been pulled back three metres by handicappers this year to 9.5 metres.
She said her form had improved significantly in the past year and she was more than capable of dealing with the new mark.
‘‘I’ve had a pretty awesome season, running a heap of personal bests, so I hope to make the final again,’’ she said.
‘‘I’ve gone back three metres since the gift last year, but I’m pretty happy with my handicap and I feel I can do a bit with it.’’
RELATED COVERAGE: Wimmera Little Athletics competitors to run at Central Park
Stawell Athletic Club president Trevor Skurrie said last week this year’s women’s gift field was one of the strongest assembled after a massive increase in prize money. Dobbyn received $2500 for last year’s victory, but this year’s winner will collect $40,000.
The prize money on offer has helped lure the likes of sprinting young gun Ella Nelson, while Melissa Breen – Australia’s fastest woman over 100m – will return to compete. Blizzard said she was not fazed by the prospect of competing against the cream of Australian women’s sprinting.
‘‘I’ve run against Melissa Breen before and I have trained with her in Canberra,’’ she said. ‘‘It’s always a little bit daunting but she’s great to run against.’’
Joining Blizzard from Cooper’s stable of athletes is 19-year-old Tiffany Boatman.
Boatman made it through her heat at last year’s gift but was unable to join Blizzard in the final after missing out on qualifying in the semi-final stage.
Horsham teenager Anna Bush will run in the women’s gift for the first time in her career. The 15-year-old has been set a tough task by handicappers – 9.25m.
Bush said she wanted to make the most of her first time competing in the women’s gift.
‘‘I’m pretty nervous about it, but I have been training hard for the past two weeks,’’ she said. ‘‘I hoped I would get a better handicap, but I’ll take it as it comes.’’
Goroke’s Duncan Cameron will run in the men’s feature for the first time, off 7.5m.
‘‘I’ve got a tough handicap, but it should be good experience,’’ he said. ‘‘With the gift being the gift and the challenge that comes with being in the middle of the field, it will be tough.
Former Harrow sprinter Phillip Brown, now of Ballarat, will also run in the Stawell Gift.
