Sibanengi Dube
After a lifetime of work with the Keilor St Bernard’s Athletics Club, Ronald Stobaus has walked away with a Medal of the Order of Australia for a life dedicated to Australian athletics.
Stobaus dusted himself from retirement last week to receive a prestigious award from Victoria Governor, Linda Dessau at the Government House in Melbourne after being acknowledged in the Australia Day honours.
The medal recognises Ron’s exceptional career in athletics, from his coaching longevity to his role in introducing young athletes in Melbourne’s north-west to the athletic disciplines of running, walking, jumping and throwing.
Stobaus could not hide his excitement as he took Star Weekly through his more than half a century journey as an athletics administrator.
He said he noticed the immediate need of a community athletics club when his school athletics team kept on failing to win races.
“[The] desire to equip children with athletics knowledge and skills propelled us into starting an athletics club in East Keilor in 1965,” Stobaus said.
Stobaus then helped set up multiple athletes clubs in the area.
Together with fellow sports enthusiasts, Peter Fawkner and Brian Mihoney, Stobaus started Keilor Little Athletics Club.
He was a co-founding member of St Bernard’s Old Collegians Athletic Club and also assisted in establishing the Keilor Heights Women’s Athletic Club.
The two senior clubs merged in 1982 and become the Keilor St Bernard’s Club, which is credited for jump-starting bright sporting careers of countless athletes including current star Mitchel Langborne.
Stobaus’ sporting activities in area have immeasurably contributed to the health and well-being of the community.
His coaching role with Keilor St Bernard Athletics Club is unparalleled in Australian athletics history. Not only did Ron help form the club, but remained head coach until today.
“I retired in 1996, but I am still coaching,” he said.
Stobaus’ athletics career was not limited to his club only but spilled into other sporting organisations where he championed the development of games.
He served as president of Track and Athletics Australia Association for two years but stepped down in 1985 due to ill health. Prior to this role, he had also served the same association as the secretary from 1978 to 1984.
The association was responsible for coaching development by providing training support to more than 200 coaches from different clubs.
“I was basically looking after coaches and athletes by providing training support and development,” he said. “We did our best to promote athletics. We brought professionalism to the sport and got a lot of young people involved in athletics.”
The 84-year-old athletics coach’s love for the sport knows no bounds.
His passion for the sport compelled him to volunteer at Sydney Olympics in 2000 where he supported the athletes both on and off track.
“I did the same here in Melbourne during the Commonwealth Games when I looked after athletes on behalf of Athletics Australia,” recounts Stobaus.
Outside of the track, Stobaus was the chairman of the Catholic Church’s East Keilor Parish when St. Peters School was established 52 years ago.
He was also part of a parish committee of Airport West that established St. Christopher’s School.
