Andrew Michelmore

Andrew Michelmore

Personal information
Birth name	Andrew Gordon Michelmore
Years active	1972–1979
Sport
Sport	Rowing
Club	Melbourne University Boat Club
Medal record Men's rowing Representing  Australia World Rowing Championships 1974 Lucerne Lwt men's four 1975 Nottingham Lwt men's four

Andrew Gordon Michelmore, AO is an Australian lightweight rower. He won Australia's first rowing World Championship title – a gold medal at the 1974 World Rowing Championships in Lucerne with the lightweight men's four.^[1]

Club, varsity and state rowing

Michelmore's senior rowing was from the Melbourne University Boat Club (MUBC). At the Australian Rowing Championships in 1972 he won a national championship title in the lightweight eight.^[2] He won another national title racing for MUBC in 1975 in a lightweight men's four.^[3]

He was selected in Victorian state representative lightweight fours to race the Penrith Cup at the Australian Rowing Championships in 1974 and 1975. Those crews won the interstate championship on both occasions.^[4]

Michelmore won a Rhodes Scholarship in 1976 and stroked the Oxford University Boat Club to consecutive Boat Race victories in 1977 and 1978. He was President of the Oxford Rowing Club in both those years.^[3] On his return from England he resumed his Australian rowing career and in 1979 won a national title for MUBC in a lightweight eight, was selected for Victoria and won the Interstate Championship in a lightweight four and was picked to represent at a third World Championship.^[3]

National representative rowing

Michelmore was selected for Australian representative honours in a lightweight coxless four for the 1974 World Rowing Championships in Lucerne. That crew won Australia's first gold medal at a FISA World Rowing Championship.^[5] The following year at Nottingham 1975 that same crew were selected to defend their title. They came third, taking the bronze medal and were the best performing Australian crew at those championships. They became the first Australian crew to win successive medals at any world championships or FISA championships.^[6]

Following his Rhodes Scholarship and rowing success at Oxford, in 1979 he was selected for his third and final Australian representative crew in the men’s lightweight eight for Bled 1979. They placed sixth.^[7]

Honours

Michelmore was made an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2018 for services to the mining industry.^[8]

References

1. "Andrew Michelmore". International Rowing Federation. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
2. 1972 Australian Championships at Guerin Foster
3. "Michelmore career at Guerin Foster". Archived from the original on 22 April 2018. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
4. "Penrith Cup 1975 at Guerin Foster". Archived from the original on 17 October 2018. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
5. "1974 World Championships at Guerin Foster". Archived from the original on 21 October 2014. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
6. "1975 World Championships at Guerin Foster". Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
7. "1979 World Championships at Guerin Foster". Archived from the original on 11 May 2018. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
8. "Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) entry for Michelmore, Andrew Gordon". Australian Honours Database. Canberra, Australia: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 26 January 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2018. For distinguished service to the mining industry through leadership roles in establishing trade and investment links, and in resource sector standards of practice on environmental and safety issues.