“I knew I had it”: Adrian Mott reflects on his Stawell Gift triumph 20 years ago

Date: 23rd March 2026

Twenty years on, Adrian Mott still remembers the silence.

Not the roar of the crowd at Stawell Gift, not the buzz of Easter Monday, not even the weight of expectation that comes with lining up in one of Australia’s most storied races. What he remembers most is the quiet, the noise fading as the moment took over.

“I was pretty sheltered from most of the atmosphere around Stawell that weekend,” Mott says. “I actually spent Easter staying in Halls Gap, which was a deliberate plan from Brima to keep me away from the Stawell buzz.”

“Brima” is coach Steve Brimacombe and he had a knack for knowing exactly what his athletes needed. For Mott, it meant calm, control and clarity.

“One of Brima’s strengths was knowing exactly how to give a pre-race pep talk and which buttons to press to get me into race mode.”

Adrian Mott, alongside training partner Dave Flowers and his coach, kept things deliberately low key, stretching out on massage tables, sticking to a meticulously planned routine, conserving both energy and emotion.

“I remember being really focused on my own preparation and controlling the things I could control,” he says.

That control extended to his mindset. Even after a semi-final performance that fell short of his own expectations, Mott never doubted his position.

“My semi-final wasn’t my best run, but I knew I was still the quickest runner in the field and had a bit left in the tank, which gave me a lot of confidence going into the final.”

A moment that slowed down

The final itself didn’t go to script, at least not at first. “I didn’t execute the start well, and Chris Touhy in the white and I actually bumped elbows in the first few strides,” Adrian recalls.

But what followed has stayed with him for two decades  – not as noise, but as instinct.

“Running down the straight, all I could hear was Brima’s voice in my head… telling me to relax my shoulders.mAs soon as I did that, I felt myself start to pull away from the field and I knew I had it before I even crossed the line.”

Even before the finish, the moment had arrived. “I was pretty excited once it sank in around the 100m mark, and to be honest the rest of the night is a bit of a blur.”

A chance meeting that changed everything

The path to that moment began in the pub. In 2005, Mott’s first trip to Stawell was less about performance and more about experience – camping with friends, soaking in the weekend. But after finishing second in his semi-final, he found himself in the Gift Hotel, where Brimacombe made his move.

“He was really positive about my semi-final run… and somehow he saw a bit of potential there,” Mott says. “It took me a few weeks after that weekend to make the decision to change coaches… because I had a really good relationship with my coach at the time, Max Warlow, and still do.”

The shift proved pivotal. Under Brimacombe, the focus sharpened. “When I moved across to Brima, the focus shifted pretty quickly to professional running. It took a couple of pre-season training cycles… before I really started listening to him properly and buying into the bigger goal of winning Stawell.”

Preparing to peak

The build-up to 2006 wasn’t filled with racing, it was precise, measured and tailored.

“I didn’t actually compete much in the months leading into Stawell,” Mott says. “Instead, we had a few pre-planned time trials and a well-structured taper.”

His preparation even broke convention. “I always seemed to get race-ready with 150m flat out efforts in the days before the heats… so Brima was pretty agile with the preparation and happy to lean into what worked for me.”

There was also discipline off the track – three weeks largely off his feet, following a variation of the traditional Jim Bradley lead-in. “His goal was for me to arrive in Stawell ready to jump out of my skin and primed to win.”

Pressure, perspective and belief

The 2006 edition carried added intrigue. Defending champion Josh Ross was chasing a third consecutive title, and the handicap system was adjusted, though not for everyone.

“From memory, everyone received that lift except two athletes, myself and Sam Jamieson,” Mott says.

“There were some conversations about whether we should protest… but in the end we decided it was better to stay focused on our preparation and avoid the extra drama.”

It was a decision rooted in confidence. “I knew that for Josh to run me down he would have to produce something close to sub-10 second form,” he says.

“To be honest, I was more mindful of the mid-markers and front-markers… the real unknowns in a Stawell Gift.”

A win that grew over time

At the time, victory was immediate and exhilarating but its meaning deepened with age.  “It was incredibly exciting to see a long-term goal come to fruition,” Mott says. “But I was pretty aware that if I wanted to be competitive against Australia’s best sprinters, I still had a lot of improvement ahead of me.

“It probably took a few years for the full significance of winning the Gift to really sink in.”

As his career progressed, and his connection to the sport grew, so too did his appreciation for the race’s place in Australian athletics.

“Hearing people’s stories and their personal links to Stawell gave me a much deeper appreciation for what the race means. “Looking back now, it’s something I’m really proud of… it’s pretty special to still be connected to such an iconic event.”

Life after the finish line

The win had immediate, practical benefits. “A house deposit!” Mott laughs. “That was the first year the prizemoney was increased to $40,000… so it made a pretty handy contribution.”

On the track, he edged closer to national contention, finishing fifth in the 100m final at the Australian Championships and pushing toward international selection.

Off it, a new career emerged. “Winning Stawell actually opened a lot of doors for me professionally,” he says.

Within a year, Adrian was working in elite sport, a journey that would span nearly two decades, including coaching stints and high-performance roles. Today, he leads as Health and Fitness Manager at Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club.

“I don’t compete anymore, but I still enjoy staying active and keeping involved in the sport in different ways.”

Why Stawell still matters

Two decades removed from his win, Adrian Mott believes the Gift’s enduring appeal lies in something simple – connection.

“Stawell holds a special place in a lot of people’s hearts… it’s a great event for bringing people together,” he says.

“There’s a real sense of connection around the Gift that you don’t see at many other events.”

And then there’s the unpredictability. “With the handicaps, there’s always a bit of mystery around who’s going to win… and that’s what keeps people coming back year after year.”

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