The gun has fired, we are trying to run but there is an opponent tugging at us from behind. Not to mention a few hurdles on the track ahead of us.

Of course, we speak of the race to become the first fully vaccinated region in Victoria, if not Australia.

This newspaper three weeks ago launched the campaign for Ballarat to become the leader of the vaccine race.

And yes, we are treating it as a race.

"The challenge we put to every eligible Ballarat citizen is to roll up your sleeve and make a booking for the jab," Committee for Ballarat chief executive Michael Poulton said at the time.

However, the news that Ballarat's vaccine rollout has been forced to slow down because of supply issues came as a cruel blow on Friday.

Instead, the city's main vaccination hub has been forced to slash opening hours, restrict the amount of jabs it can administer and ban walk-up jabs this weekend.

Instead of 1000 needles going into arms this weekend, there will only be around 700.

There is only one path out of the situation we once again find ourselves in this weekend and that path is vaccinations.

To have any momentum we have been building pulled out from underneath us is nothing short of deflating.

Earlier this week this newspaper reported the newly-released data that detailed exactly how each region was faring in its vaccine rollout.

It painted a very clear that the big cities in regional Victoria (Geelong, Bendigo and Ballarat) were leading the way for the entire state.

Around one in four people have been fully vaccinated in those areas, with the target of about 80 per cent generally considered the accepted goal.

While somewhat pleasing, it showed Ballarat still has a long path ahead of it.

We desperately need more supplies of the vaccine in Ballarat to help not just our own race to become the first fully vaccinated city, but get Australia as whole closer to the target.

Bring on more doses!

- Pat Nolan, deputy editor