General News
13 May, 2026
Classic as always
Wimmera residents laced up on Sunday morning for the 17th Horsham Mother’s Day Classic, joining communities across Australia in the annual walk and run supporting breast and ovarian cancer research.
The event began at the Horsham Soundshell, with registrations, an opening ceremony and the walk/run starting at 9am.
One of the organisers, Jackie Exell, said attendance was similar to last year, despite early numbers appearing low before the event officially started.
“They were actually on par with last year,” Ms Exell said.
“I think we probably had people turning up a little bit later.”
Ms Exell said organisers made a strong effort to keep the event on time after receiving community feedback in previous years.
“One of the things that we really tried to do hard this year was to stay on schedule,” she said.
“By the time we got started, everyone had very much appeared.”
About 200 people registered before the day, with a few more signing up in the morning.
Ms Exell said final attendance was around 200 to 220 participants.
She said most attendees were locals, but some had travelled from out of town to visit family for Mother’s Day.
“I think mainly locals, lots of familiar faces in the crowd, and a lot of people who have made the Mother’s Day Classic a bit of a tradition for them,” Ms Exell said.
Fundraising for the event remains open until June 30, so the final amount raised is not yet known.
Ms Exell said the top individual fundraiser as of the latest update was Helen, who had raised about $900 in memory of her daughter, who died from breast cancer in her early 30s.
The event also featured a raffle, which will remain open until May 31 and will be drawn in early June.
Ms Exell said the day’s highlights included participants dressing up and teams making a special effort with their outfits.
However, she said the strongest part of the event was the community spirit.
“I think that sense of community is really what stands out,” she said.
“People coming together and sharing their stories.”
Four committee members organised the Horsham event, supported by six additional volunteers on the day.
Ms Exell thanked the community, local businesses, participants and volunteers for their support.
“This is the 17th Horsham Mother’s Day Classic, and it’s certainly not possible without support from local businesses and obviously the participants and the volunteers as well,” she said.
She also encouraged people to take their health seriously.”
“Make sure that you advocate for yourself and never dismiss anything that you’re concerned about,” Ms Exell said.
“Always make sure you do your annual checks and go and see your GP.”