Stephanie Noon, Ella Byrne among athletes set for SAAL Kensington Gift live stream

A netball stalwart turned 54-year-old rookie sprinter is among the hopefuls set for this Sunday’s live streamed Kensington Gift. See how to watch here.

After more than 40 years dedicated to netball, rookie sprinter Stephanie Noon suddenly found herself in the deep end of a whole new sporting endeavour.

Now the super fit 54-year-old is set to take on this Sunday’s SA Athletic League Kensington Gift, set to be live streamed here on advertiser.com.au from 12pm.

At the Athletics SA Stadium back in 2016, Noon was in the blocks for her first ever 100m sprint; lined up against seasoned rivals boasting far superior track IQ earned from years of hard graft in the sprint game.

“I was so, so nervous about coming out of the blocks,” Mrs Noon tells The Messenger, looking out across Kensington Oval from the grandstand on a sweltering Monday afternoon.

However, that race would be the start of a “lovely, natural transition” for Mrs Noon – from an Adelaide Wildcat to a dual World Masters Athletics gold medallist in the 4 x 100m relay.

Mrs Noon says netball “was very much my life”, but she was coaxed into running after her son got involved.

Told by his coach she had “the physique of a sprinter”, and the ideal height, to complement a solid fitness base from decades playing centre in netball, she was quickly sold on the sport.

Mrs Noon, along with her husband and handicapper Ian Byrne and his daughter Ella, all from Urrbrae, are living proof of the diverse range of ages and abilities that will be on display at the annual Kensington Gift this Sunday.

The event will be the first athletics meet of the summer to be live streamed on advertiser.com.au, followed by the Brighton Gift on December 13.

Kensington Gift official Ian Byrne, wife Stephanie Noon and daughter Ella Byrne say the Kensington Gift is an event for all ages and abilities. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Mrs Noon says the pristine surface of Kensington Oval is her favourite place to run.

“The surface is unmatched anywhere else, it’s such a privilege to run on this,” she says.

But the best part about running is often the post-competition debriefs on the car ride home with Ella.

“We’ll both be able to empathise with each other, unpack and debrief. It’s just motivating and helpful,” she says.

Ella, on the other hand, has ridden a career trajectory completely opposite to her stepmother’s so far.

Her netball career was prematurely cut after having three rounds of knee surgery, leaving the 17-year-old to focus on Little Athletics.

“They didn’t advise me to play netball … so I started running,” Ella says.

“I’ve been lucky to win a few sashes (at the gift).”

Ian is simply proud of the both of them, saying they’ve built layers of resilience after bouncing back from injuries and other disappointments.

“They’ve just powered through,” he says.

Ian, who holds the sometimes controversial role as a handicapper, is committed to providing a fair system for all with competitors ranging in age from 12 up to 70 at the gift.

“So when you actually the start … and the gun goes, there’s a belief for you you’ve got as much chance as anybody else to get the victory,” Ian says, whose last serious sprint was when he had to chase after a thief in Bali who took off with Stephanie’s iPhone.

“Everyone can participate, there’s no age limit.”

Mrs Noon says Ian has been an “unbelievable support” for her and Ella’s career so far.

“Sprinters often get accused of being princesses, and we kind of are, and he supports the princesses perfectly,” she says.