The George Nelson Shepparton Gift is set to return for another day of blistering dashes, fast-twitch fibre specialists and photo finishes.
The event's namesake Nelson — a Yorta Yorta man — was a star runner from the region and a legend of Indigenous and Goulburn Valley sport.
2025’s Shepparton Gift is part of the Victorian Athletic League and will be a twilight event, with the racing held between 2pm-8pm on Saturday, February 15, at Shepparton Showgrounds.
Now in its third edition after a 20-year hiatus, the Shepparton Gift was the first Indigenous Gift in Victoria — meaning to be named after an Indigenous athlete.
Shepparton Gift committee member and daughter of the event's namesake, Robynne Nelson, said it was great for the pro-running community and the Yorta Yorta people that the event be named after her father.
“(George Nelson) is an icon of Indigenous sport, GV running and the Victorian Athletic League,” Robynne said.
“I can’t even describe how proud I am to have this race named after him.
“He is someone that is well known across the Victorian Athletic League at every event around the state for 50 years.
“He was a successful sprinter, middle-distance runner, distance runner and trainer, which is a rarity in the Victorian Athletic League’s history.
“Given Shepparton has that rich history of pro-running that came out of our Yorta Yorta community, (the fact) it is named after a Yorta Yorta elder is really significant.”
In terms of the event itself, Robynne said the Gift is showing clear signs of growth year-upon-year.
“(The event) is looking fantastic,” she said.
“We have just had news that we have had 500 entries so we have increased by quite a bit, 90 (extra) for this year I think it is.
“It shows we are a growing event, so we are pretty pleased with that.
“The ‘Shepp’ Gift last year had really increased in crowd size compared to the first year, with this increase in runners in 2025, we would expect (crowd numbers) to increase again.”
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