Stubbs flies to victory in famous shoes

Teenage sprinter Aaron Stubbs has long shown plenty of talent.
And at least as much tenacity.
So much so that back in 2003 at the age of just 12, he convinced superstar Matt
Shirvington to give him his running spikes.
Six years later - having finally grown into them - Stubbs donned the shoes of the
five-time national 100m champion and sped to victory in the 128th edition of the
Stawell Gift on Monday.
The 18-year-old Queenslander, who is studying osteopathy in Lismore, NSW, warmed up
for his first tilt at the historic 120m handicap race by becoming the first man ever
to win the senior and under-19 double in the beach sprint and relay at last month's
Australian surf lifesaving championships in Perth.
That effort confirmed to coach Ryan Hoffman, who has been competing at Central Park
with distinction for 20 years, that his man was ready to make a mark at Stawell.
Racing off a handicap of 7.25m, Stubbs reeled in the frontmarkers by the halfway
stage of the final before surging away to win in an adjusted time of 11.93 seconds.
Paul Tancredi was second in 12.10 and backmarker Matt Davies was third in 12.14.
Stubbs was inspired by watching Shirvington clock 10.09 seconds for the 100m - then
the fastest time ever by an Australian on home soil - at Runaway Bay on the Gold
Coast in 2003.
Showing admirable persistence, he nagged away at Shirvington and was rewarded when
he mailed him his shoes a few weeks later.
"I put them on for the first time a couple of years ago to see if they fitted, just
for fun and they looked good so I chucked them back in the zip-up bag," said Stubbs,
who pocketed $40,000 for the victory.
"They only came out of the bag once more before this weekend.
"Last week I saw them in the cupboard and I got them out.
"I thought I'd give them one last go and see if they make that little bit of
difference and they did."
Shirvington retired last year having never raced at Stawell.
But he was pleased to hear he had played some part in Stubbs' victory, even if he
could only vaguely remember the 2003 incident.
"You don't think about what might happen when you meet young kids at clinics or sign
autographs but it's fantastic to know that I could inspire someone to win," said
Shirvington.
"It's nice to still be a part of someone winning. At least my shoes are able to keep
going and at least win something.
"But boy, he's taken a risk wearing my spikes, and the first time he's worn them -
that's amazing."
The victory was something of a family affair for Stubbs, whose 40-year-old father
Paul finished second in his heat of the Gift on Saturday before tearing a hamstring
in the semi-finals of the veterans race.
"He (Aaron) showed a lot of promise at 15, mostly doing the surf stuff," said Paul
Stubbs.
"But he wants to be a runner on the track so this year he said he was going to have
a go at Stawell.
"Everyone is going 'sit back, why don't you wait a year?' and he said no.
"He's very stubborn and said 'that's what I want to do and next year I want to put
times on the track for athletics'.
"Now he has done that and he's proved me wrong again."
Stubbs' next aim is to represent Australia in the 200m at the 2012 London Olympics.
Josh Ross's bid to win a record third Gift crown ended when he was eliminated in the
semi-finals earlier on Monday.
Trisha Greaves won the women's Gift final in 13.60, with Tamsyn Lewis second in 13.82.