Almost 1500 Geelong residents came together on Sunday to celebrate and remember those affected by breast cancer at the Mother’s Day Classic.
For the first time since 2019, the event was able to be held in person and organiser Kristen McMaster said it was a “fantastic” day.
“Everyone got into the spirit and there was a lot of pink – it was wonderful to see,” she said.
“I was roaming around and talking to a lot of people about what the Mother’s Day Classic meant to them – everyone had their own story for being there.
“It was really good to see everyone come together and celebrate in-person – we had 1450 people registered to take part.
“That’s reflective of the numbers we had pre-COVID, which is a really good effort because the Melbourne one was down by about a third.
“It’s a really good community event and there’s no reason we can’t get the numbers up over 5000 in the coming years.”
The day saw participants take part in either a run or walk around Eastern Park, overlooking Eastern Beach, as well as a range of kids activities, with the goal to raise much-needed funds and awareness for breast cancer research.
Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australia, with 55 Australians diagnosed every day.
Since the Mother’s Day Classic started in 1998, the five-year survival rate for breast cancer has increased from 84 per cent to 91.5 per cent, but an average of nine Australians lose their battle with breast cancer each day.
In the 25-year history of the Mother’s Day Classic, almost $40 million has been donated to fund research, with donations for this year’s tally still open until June 30.
Mother’s Day Classic Foundation chief executive Zara Lawless said she was thrilled to welcome back traditional Mother’s Day Classic experiences across the nation in time for the 25th anniversary celebration.
“This year we celebrated 25 years of impact with over 50,000 Australians across the country, and what made it an extra special Mother’s Day Classic was having our events back to their original, fun and exciting format,” she said.
“We are so proud of the incredible response from the participants this year, with communities in every corner of the nation uniting in a sea of pink and getting active for breast cancer research.
“Mother’s Day can be a challenging day for many people – particularly those impacted by breast cancer – but by taking part in the Mother’s Day Classic we stand stronger together in the fight against breast cancer.”
