Masters race joins Ballarat Gift event program

NEXT weekend’s Ballarat Gift carnival will feature a new event – a 550-metre Masters race for men and women.

It joins a packed roster for the two-day professional running event, to be hosted by the Ballarat Athletic Club at City Oval on 8 and 9 February.

Although the entry list was not finalised by print deadline, last year’s respective men’s and women’s winners, Sherman Cooper and Ruby Crisp, are expected to compete again.

Gift committee member Andrew Drummond said organisers are expecting up to 850 competitors in a range of distances from 70 metres to 3200 metres.

“This year we’ve added a new event, which is a 550 Masters,” Mr Drummond said. “We normally have the 550 Open but this year we’ve got a 550 Masters.

“We try to replicate the program they have at the Stawell Gift, so everyone who’s working on what they’re doing at Stawell gets an opportunity to run at every distance.

“We get a lot of people who like the fact that we do that.”

Sunday’s on-track activities will include the junior Dash for Sash from 9am, for which entries will be accepted on the day.

“They don’t have to be aligned with Little Aths; they can be just a young runner. It’s an opportunity for the young ones to have a bit of a run,” Mr Drummond said.

All main finals will take place on the Sunday.

The two Gift finals carry equal prizemoney of $7500 for men and women, with an overall prize pool of more than $31,500.

“After Stawell, I think we’re the next highest prizemoney [event] and we always have that equal prizemoney for men and women,” Mr Drummond said.

“We were one of the ones that instigated that a few years ago.”

Among Ballarat athletes to watch will be 16-year-old Grace Crowe, who ran a personal best time of 12:01 over 120 metres at Victorian country championships racing in Bendigo last weekend.

“She’s off a tight [handicap] mark but she’s a real competitor, and we’re expecting her to do well,” Mr Drummond said.

He said Patrick Martin won the 70-metre and 120-metre Open events at Frankston two weeks ago.

“He’s in red hot form. He actually ran on the weekend up in Canberra and ran a PB in the 400 [of] 46:82, which was the fifth-fastest time in Australia, so he’s moving very nicely at the moment.”

Mr Drummond said Sherman also ran at that event, and also notched up a personal best time.

“I believe he’s running [at the Gift]; I haven’t seen the entries but I would assume he’s running,” he said. “He’s off very tough marks but he’s an absolute talent.

“He’s in very good form as well.”

Mr Drummond said Crisp, meanwhile, had been running on the circuit and was expected to be present.

“It’s a big weekend; it brings a lot of people from all around the state, but also interstate as well,” he said, adding that runners come from as far as Queensland to compete.

“After Stawell, it’s really the next biggest event on the circuit,” Mr Drummond said.

Fifty market stalls will be set up on the Sunday as an added attraction for families. The Gift will be live streamed on Kayo.