Three local athletes are gearing up for the Powercor Stawell Gift held over the Easter long weekend from 4 – 6 April, at Central Park in Stawell.

Local runners Shauna Herbst, Andrea Hearn and Christian Pasquali will line up against elite national and international competition in what promises to be one of the deepest fields in recent years.

Beechworth's Herbst, who claimed the Wangaratta Gift in January, will compete in the women’s Stawell Gift after a strong summer season.

Coached by Jason Boulton, Herbst’s Wangaratta victory came in a fast time, resulting in her handicap being tightened to 4.5 metres.

Wangaratta Sports Club president Anna Pasquali said that’s a pretty tight handicap.

“Because she won in such a quick time, it’s been pulled right back, so it will be interesting to see how she goes.”

Wangaratta runner Andrea Hearn will contest both the women’s Gift and the 70 metre sprint.

Coached by John Gannon, Hearn travels weekly to Seymour to train and comes into the carnival off a confidence boosting victory at Geelong, where she won the 70 metres.

“She retained her handicap there, so she’ll be competitive again,” Pasquali said.

“She’s off 5.75 metres in the 70 and comes into Stawell in really good shape.”

In the women’s Gift, Hearn will start off the 10 metre limit, but the event has an added international flavour this year with American sprint star Sha’Carri Richardson competing from scratch.

The field has been lifted by around two metres to accommodate Richardson’s presence.

Wangaratta’s third representative is Christian, who will race in the men’s Gift over 70 metres and the under 18 boys’ 100 metres.

The 16-year-old has been a regular finalist in junior events this season, including finals appearances at Bendigo and Wangaratta.

“He’s made a few finals in the 70s, so he’ll be looking to push into the semis if everything goes right,” Pasquali said.

“But he’s probably more competitive in the under 18 100 off his mark of 4.75.”

The Powercor Stawell Gift has been held in all but five years since 1878, and is one of the world’s most famous and prestigious foot races.

Run on grass, athletes are handicapped according to form and ability, and start off varying marks accordingly.

Herbst, the 2026 Into Our Hands Women’s Wangaratta Gift winner, said of all the races this season, she feels the most relaxed heading into Stawell.

"The flip side of competing so well at Wangaratta is that I broke a thing called ‘ceiling time’, resulting in my mark being fairly taken back further to 4.5m (about 2m further to run from my winning handicap at Wangaratta) and in a field of 104 talented athletes, I will be the fifth furthest back," she said.

"While it will be an absolute honour to run from the back in red, it means the odds are not best in my favour.

"Because of this, I am purely excited to have some fun with the other athletes and see if I can bring some speed similar to what I did at Wangaratta.

"In this case, I think I’ll have a good chance at least progressing to the semis and if so, I’ll see what I can do from there."

The Beechworth-based runner said as a working professional and turning 30 this year, every off-season she seriously considers if she is prepared for the commitment of going again, last season especially.

"Mentally, I thought I was done in April 2025 and then got seriously itchy feet in July," she said.

"From there, I’ve managed to produce a season that I knew I was so capable of but never expected to happen so suddenly.

"I dropped half a second off my personal best in the 100m, 1.5 seconds in the 200m, and managed podium placings at prestigious events like Maryborough and Bay Sheffield Gifts.

"This means, in my mind I’m heading into Stawell with nothing to lose which, I appreciate, is an incredibly fortunate position to be in.

"I just want to emphasize that this year’s Gift races are going to be unlike anything the sport has seen in years with the handicap limits capped at 10m, international stars on the line and yet, I wouldn’t put my odds against a domestic win."

Pasquali encouraged the Wangaratta community to get behind the local runners, with the carnival available through live streaming across the weekend and free to air coverage on Channel 7 on Easter Monday before the AFL.

“I just hope the community supports the three athletes running at Stawell,” she said.

“It’s great exposure for them and for the region.”

Regular attendee, Bella Pasquali, will miss this year's Stawell Gift due to an injury but will be retuning to the track in May this year.