Published on Wednesday, 6 August 2025 at 9:21:39 AM
Left to right - Gel Ashworth, Les Blakey, Wendy Meredith, Dale Dohnt
There was a buzz of excitement at the Kambalda Community Recreation Facility on Tuesday 5 August, as Westgold Resources Limited hosted “A Cuppa with the Melbourne Cup” — a special event celebrating the town’s proud gold mining connection to one of Australia's most iconic sporting trophies.
The Lexus Melbourne Cup, currently valued at $850,000, made its way to Kambalda as part of its 2025 Melbourne Cup Tour. This year marks the first time Western Australian gold has been used in crafting the trophy, with gold sourced from Westgold’s mines, including the renowned Beta Hunt mine right here in Kambalda.
In recognition of the community's strong ties to the mining industry, local heroes were invited to share in the celebration — including first responders from Fire and Emergency Services, Police, Ambulance, and Kambalda’s golden girls and guys of the moment, local seniors.
Shire President Cr Malcolm Cullen officially opened the event, warmly welcoming attendees and highlighting the region’s rich history of gold discoveries. He spoke of remarkable local finds such as the Golden Eagle Nugget — a legendary 35.325kg nugget unearthed in 1931 by 17-year-old prospector Jim Larcombe.
Westgold Manager Communications and Corporate Affairs, Annette Ellis shared the company’s commitment to community engagement, particularly following the merger with Karora a year ago. “We believe when the community thrives, so will Westgold, and vice versa” she said. “It was important for us to bring the Cup to Kambalda — a community at the heart of our operations.”
Guests appreciated the opportunity to view the Cup up close, with many commenting on how special it was to host the event locally rather than needing to travel to Kalgoorlie.
The Cup itself, made of 1.778 kilograms of pure 18-carat gold and weighing a total of 3.85 kilograms, features three handles designed so the the winning owner, jockey and trainer could all raise the iconic trophy. This year’s trophy is made from 44 individual pieces of WA gold.
Kambalda’s stop is part of an international tour that began in New York City on 4 June. From here, the Cup travels to Perth and then across 25 more locations before returning to Melbourne for the iconic race that stops the nation.
A gallery of images from the event will be available soon so be sure to come back and view them.
𝑫𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒙𝒕 𝑺𝒉𝒊𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑪𝒐𝒐𝒍𝒈𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒊𝒆 𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕!
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