Glenn Smith

The fastest woman alive flew to rural Australia to chase down amateurs on a grass field for $27,500. The Stawell Gift is a 148-year-old handicap sprint held every Easter in a town of 6,000 people in western Victoria. 120 meters. On grass. Uphill. Lanes separated by rope, not paint. The twist: slower runners get up to a 10-meter head start. The world champion starts at zero. Richardson gave away 10 meters to her closest competitor. Some runners started 25 meters ahead. She had to close that gap over 120 meters of grass while running uphill. She won her heat in 13.8 seconds. In 144 years of the men's race, only two men have ever won from scratch. In the women's race (started 1989), only two women. The handicap system is specifically designed so the fastest runner should lose. The race started in 1878 at the end of the Australian gold rush. The distance, 120 meters, comes from the gap between two pubs in Sheffield, England, where professional sprinting began. Competitors historically trained by chasing kangaroos. 737 athletes entered this year. Prize money: $40,000 AUD. Last year they paid Australia's teenage sprint star Gout Gout $50,000 just to show up. He got eliminated in the semis. The handicap ate him alive. Richardson said it felt like being a kid again, playing tag. The woman who runs 10.65 described the hardest race on her 2026 calendar as "playing rabbit."