UP IN the historic grandstand at Stawell's Central Park you will find John Wiltshire every Easter.
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Methodically, Mr Wiltshire marks in his program every race winner and race field from the Stawell Gift to distance events.
Only once in 65 years has Mr Wiltshire missed a Stawell Gift carnival - until now.
The four-day carnival, featuring Australia's richest footraces on Easter Monday, will not run amid the coronavirus pandemic.
It remains uncertain whether the race might be postponed or cancelled for this year.
Stawell is an Easter ritual for the Wiltshire family and 2012 Gift winner Matt Wiltshire was unsure how his pa or the rest of the family would adjust.
Matt Wiltshire said he felt sick when the event was cancelled, knowing the years of preparation each athlete channels into this moment.
"It's sort of weird, especially for Pa," Matt Wiltshire said. "This is his ritual, it is part of his calendar each year. He's up there Friday through to Monday."
John Wiltshire was favourite to win the coveted Gift sash in 1958, only to tear a hamstring in the semi-finals.
It was more than 50 years before the Wiltshire name made it into the Stawell Gift folklore with a then-20-year-old Matt running in the white off eight metres to capture the title and a $40,000 prize.
''We have got the name there now, it's magic," a proud John Wiltshire told media at the time.
"We always hoped and prayed he would get there. We always knew he had ability.''