Runners ready for return of Castlemaine Gift for first time since 2000

The Castlemaine Gift meeting will be held at Camp Reserve and has been revived by Darryl Nettleton.

“I used to run it between 1993 and 2000, but it then all got a bit too hard with my work teaching in Bendigo,” Nettleton said on Thursday.

“It’s an event that has come and gone over the years.

“It used to be an institution back in the 1920s and 1930s, it was around in the 1950s and 1960s, and then there weren’t many until I started it up again back in 1993.”

The prizemoney for the 120m Castlemaine Gift is $5000, but there is the added carrot attached of the winner to get a three-quarter of a metre lift off their handicap for the prestigious Stawell meeting at Easter.

The final of the Gift will be run at 6.45pm, while one of the other highlights of the meeting will be the $4000 Women’s 400m.

Among those who have entered for the Women’s 400m, but is still to confirm that she will start, is Olympian Morgan Mitchell.

Mitchell, 22, was a Rio Olympian last year, competing in both the women’s 400m where she made the semi-final, and in the women’s 4 x 400m relay team that finished eighth.

Sunday’s action is scheduled to start at 11.15am with heats of the junior girls and boys gift.

In total $19,000 in prizemoney is up for grabs.

Sunday’s Castlemaine Gift program features:

• 120m Masters (35+);

• 120m Open (Gift);

• 120m Under 20

• 120m Womens;

• 300m Masters (35+);

• 3200m Open;

• 400m Open;

• 400m Under 20;

• 400m Womens;

• 70m Open; and

• 800m Open.

Meanwhile, the $2000 Daylesford Gift will be run at Cricket Willow on Saturday.

Michael Kember is returning to defend his title from last year.

No runner has gone back-to-back in the Daylesford Gift since it was first held in 2005.