CHAZ Mostert had a heartfelt message to share as he strode up on stage to become Supercars’ newest Barry Sheene Medal winner.
On the track, Mostert is a 21-time Supercars Championship race winner; off it, he has been prominent with his #nosocialhate campaign targeting bullying via online platforms.
“At the end of the day, we’re all just humans,” Mostert said at the Supercars Gala upon being asked of the inspiration behind #nosocialhate.
“Even though we are in a beautiful sport like Supercars or NRL or AFL or plenty of other jobs out there, I think it’s pretty important to just remember back to the fact we are humans.
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“I think the #nosocialhate thing really stemmed from guys that I looked up to, guys like Will Davison and Rick Kelly that were copping it online at the time probably through more antics of myself to be completely honest, running into their door or vice versa and some of my fans going after them.
“I just thought it was important to talk up and be more open that things on social is not always the best representation of the person you’re trying to attack.
“I think it’s pretty scary these days, a lot of people in this room are parents of young kids coming through.
“I’d hate to be a young kid coming through school these days.
“I think it’s pretty scary… you have got all these beautiful avenues and social networks that you can keep up to date with your fans, your friends or people you look up to, but it’s a crazy tool that probably needs to be monitored a bit more, so I think it’s important to try to reflect on that.”
That reminder comes against the backdrop of what has been a tough year for Mostert and fiancé Riarne Marwood.
“On the track it has been a pretty hard year but off the track it has been an even harder year,” said Mostert.
“I just want to thank my beautiful partner Riarne. It has been a super tough year for us off the track and I admire you so much for your strength and courage throughout this year.
“Honestly, you’re a much better person than I’ll ever be.”
