Warrnambool and Terang gifts organisers are excited to have dates locked in but are wary about the coronavirus pandemic impacting their events' return this summer.
The Victorian Athletic League released its 2021-22 season calendar with the two south-west gifts to return to their traditional slots.
The Warrnambool Gift is the third event of the VAL season and is scheduled for Saturday, December 4. The Terang Gift will follow the next day on Sunday, December 5.
The 15th edition of the Terang Gift was cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The VAL gave the Terang Athletic Club the option to run the event in January or February like the Warrnambool Gift did but the club's committee decided to focus on the 2021 event.
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Terang Athletic Club president Ken Plummer said it was exciting to return this season.
"We're quite excited and the processes to run it are under way," he said.
"(We had a meeting on Wednesday night) to run through some of the discussions we need to have.
"We've got sponsorship under way and Kerrin McKenzie has been working solidly on that and so has the rest of the team.
"The thing we're not sure about is the Victorian Athletic League tended to close down season until after Christmas because of lockdowns so we're a little bit wary of that.
"At the moment we are intending to go ahead with our meeting and some of the planning is well under way."
Plummer said the club intended to offer equal prizemoney for both the men's and women's gifts winners for the first time in its history.
"I have put forward a proposal for equal prize money as previously there has been a disparity and talking to athletes, officials and I argued to the committee that it was time," he said.
"I can't see any reasons why not. It will be good to see equality in the prizemoney and that is the general feeling of our committee too."
The club is also looking to livestream the event incase crowds are again not allowed at meetings.
Warrnambool Gift president Richard Wearmouth said it was terrific to share a weekend again with Terang, and on their traditional late-November-early-December date, after last year's cancellation.
Wearmouth said there was still some uncertainty hanging over the season due to the coronavirus pandemic but he was remaining optimistic the event will run.
"It's still too far ahead to know where we're going," he said. "The VAL have programmed a terrific season and there's some clubs that have come back and some new clubs as well.
"We're excited to be given a date again and things are looking very positive for the VAL at this stage. There's no talk of the season being interrupted."
Wearmouth said the committee had not confirmed their venue but were closing in on a decision. He said it was hopeful of another bumper edition.
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Sean Hardeman
I'm a sports journalist for the Warrnambool Standard who covers a number of different sports across the south-west of Victoria. I enjoy watching cycling, surfing, football, soccer and Formula 1.
I'm a sports journalist for the Warrnambool Standard who covers a number of different sports across the south-west of Victoria. I enjoy watching cycling, surfing, football, soccer and Formula 1.
