The Kelfit crew is set for a huge Stawell campaign this weekend.
The blustery wind, light drizzle and chilly temperature last Thursday at Chittick Park reflected the mood of the Kelfit stable as it prepared for one of its final sessions ahead of the Stawell Gift, the Victorian Athletic League’s premier race meeting.
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A stellar campaign has seen the Seymour group notch a record number of wins throughout the 2025-26 season and had it poised for an even bigger crusade at the VAL’s grand final equivalent across the Easter weekend, an event which boasts the ‘richest footrace in Australia’ tagline.
For the uninitiated, Stawell is a big deal in athletics.
Last year saw both Gout Gout and Lachlan Kennedy run on the famous grass at Central Park, two of Australia’s most hyped sprinting prospects in recent memory, while Olympian Bree Rizzo took out the women’s 120m gift, the marquee event, from a mark of scratch, meaning she started up to 11 metres behind her competitors and still won.
This year will see American sprinting superstars Sha’Carri Richardson and Christian Coleman, the sixth fastest female and sixth fastest male of all time over 100m, respectively, and both multiple world champions, grace the event in a massive boon for the VAL, while Australian sporting legend Cathy Freeman will be in attendance to launch a book about her famous 1996 Stawell victory over 400m.
The Kelfit stable has had winners across the past few editions, with Olivia Attard claiming back-to-back wins in the 1600m event, while Cooper Lubeck has triumphed in the past, and the group looked set for another big year in front of the historic grandstand.
But all VAL races see athlete starting positions adjusted on a performance-based scale to level the playing field and the handicap announcement last Wednesday saw a number of Kelfit hopefuls whacked with metres given their outstanding performances, making it that much harder to win.
Coach Kelvin Lubeck, the VAL’s Trainer of the Year for 2024, said the handicap announcement had put somewhat of a dampener on the group’s preparation ahead of the season finale, especially since so many of his charges were genuine threats in their respective races.
“I was so confident during the week leading up to (handicaps being announced), I thought at least 10 of the Kelfit athletes could make the podium at Stawell, which would be just massive,” he said.
“I thought we could have even three or four winners, maybe, but we have had a hiccup with a few handicaps. But that’s what happens every year, it’s the hardest event of the year to win at Stawell.
“But they’re fit. We have Hayden Anderson and Harriett Fox injured, but apart from that, everyone is fit and firing.
“As the coaching goes and the fitness goes, and how they are running, it’s as good as I’ve ever had them.”
To say his stable could have stood on the final podium up to 10 times is no exaggeration, having notched 16 wins throughout the season, a massive step up when considering it had previously never made it to double digits.
The wins were varied in nature across the squad, too, with newcomer Declan Goodwin snaring two sashes for the year, the first being the 1600m open at Cobden before earning victory over 800m in Ballarat, while Fox and Andrea Hearne also added a sash each in their first year with the stable, taking out the 120m women’s gift at Portarlington and the 120m women’s gift in Geelong, respectively.
A number of seasoned campaigners also took the next step, with Liv Barry, Nick Dundon, Julian Morgan, Glenn Barry and Samuel Zotti all earning maiden sashes in VAL competition, while Attard, Isabella Morgan and Cooper Lubeck all beefed up their trophy cabinets with further success.
Lucy Zotti (centre, pink top) has notched four wins this season in VAL competition and presents as one of Kelfit’s best chances at Stawell. Photo: Megan Fisher.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
Lucy Zotti enjoyed a standout campaign, earning four victories following a 2024-25 season that saw her notch six second place finishes and one third, without a win.
Most impressive about Zotti’s season, though, was the distances she won over, having triumphed in both the 400m and 800m events at the Seymour Gift, before showcasing her outright speed with wins over 120m at Shepparton and then in the 300m on the track at Ringwood.
While Lubeck acknowledged that the growth of the squad meant more athletes and more opportunities to win, which perhaps accounts for some of the victory tally, he was quick to praise the commitment of the athletes, who endure a chaotic schedule week in, week out, to make sure they are at the required level.
“It’s the biggest squad we’ve ever had, so numbers help,” Lubeck said of the 16 wins his squad has produced this season.
“We have Andrea Hearne from Wangaratta, three others from Geelong and three girls from Shepparton, so numbers do help.
“But overall, I think for the Kelfit squad, this is our third or fourth season competing, and the athletes who have been competing are just feeling comfortable.
“They know everyone, they know the system and they know how fit you’ve got to be. We’re training four or five times a week, from running, to pilates, to gym, to the pool, and they’ve all committed, so I couldn’t be happier. They’re just great.”
While the updated handicaps have potentially cruelled some chances, a number of Kelfit athletes are still strong candidates for a win, with Lucy Zotti over 400m and 800m, Cooper Lubeck over 1600m and Glenn Barry in the Masters 800m perhaps the best placed of the squad to bring home a sash.
Coach Lubeck is maintaining an optimistic outlook and is confident his crew will still be able to bring home a big haul from Stawell.
“I keep coming back to (the handicap announcements) with what we got,” Lubeck said.
“Without going too into it, we probably had six of our hopes brought back, and some by 16m, that’s a big hit to come back.
“But the positive is we’re in a position still where we can all podium, so that is a massive achievement.”
