Andrew N Guerin
Mercantile Rowing Club (VIC) (also Melbourne Rowing Club (VIC) and Leander Club (UK))
Andrew has undertaken successfully most aspects of the sport from elite to masters rowing, administration at club, State and National levels, umpiring at all levels including 30 years as an international umpire, team manager at all levels including two Olympic Games and World Championships, trustee of club and national rowing funds, rowing photographer and rowing historian. He one of the few people to be life member of his club, and also his state and national association. His citation for life membership of Rowing Victoria sums it up:
Your contribution to Rowing Victoria has been outstanding. The quality of work in your role as President of Rowing Victoria and the significant changes you have made to the nature and operations of Rowing Victoria is renowned. Your contribution to the sport through compiling the History of Australian Rowing is remarkable. The forming of the Victorian Rowing Hall of Fame has seen Victoria lead the way in recognising our rowing greats. The significant volunteer roles you have provided to the sport include 36 years of umpiring at State, National, International and Olympic competition, team manager for State, National and Olympic teams, Rowing Australia Councillor and Rowing Victoria Awards Committee. Congratulations Andrew on your Rowing Victoria Life Membership.
Whilst he achieved some success as a club and school coach, he claims to be Brighton Grammar's worst first crew coach have coached them to a last place. To cut him some slack, the stroke of that crew was in hospital at the time of the race after having been run over on the way to the course.
When asked what were the highlights of his captaincy and Presidency years of Mercantile Rowing Club, he is quite clear cut. "My years as Captain were focussed simply on recruiting a large number of good quality rowers and coaches. It was pleasing to see in the years after my captaincy that so many of them were successful at the elite level and for this base of members to lead the Club into some of it's greatest years. As to the years as President, they were all about introducing and embedding professional coaching at the Club. I was surprised how little resistance there was to this radical move." His work building up his club's Foundation to a substantial size has created a lasting legacy for Mercantile.
However he best known now for his rowing history work including the creation and development of both this website and the Australian Rowing Images website.
Andrew was a qualified lawyer and Fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia. He is now retired from work in financial institutions where he variously acted as chief legal officer, company secretary, responsible manager and chief operating officer. He now regards himself as a rowing historian and photographer.
Andrew Guerin umpiring in the old fashioned way after the electronic starting system failed at 2003 World Championships
Some of his rowing activities
1973 - APS Head of the River Scotch College first crew, bow seat - First
1973 - World Junior Championships - Men's Eight bow - Eighth
1974 - APS Head of the River, Scotch College fourth crew, coach - First
1974 - National Championship Lightweight Eights - First
1975 - National Championship Lightweight Eights - First
1975 - Club Treasurer
1976 - National Championship Lightweight Eights - First
1976 - Club Secretary
1977 - APS Head of the River, BGS second crew, coach - Last
1978 - University Championships Men's Eight bow - First
1978 - Captain
1978 - APS Head of the River, BGS second crew, coach - Fifth
1979 - Club and Equipment Manager
1979 - APS Head of the River, BGS first crew, co-coach - last
1980-1984 (incl) - Captain
1980 - APS Head of the River, BGS first crew, coach - Fifth
1980 - Co-author of 'Mercantile - A Century of Rowing', published by Mercantile RC, 1980
1984 - Club Treasurer
1986 -1989 (incl) - Victorian team manager
1988 - Under 23 Australian team manager - Trans Tasman and Seattle tour
1988 - Life membership Mercantile Rowing Club
1989 - World Championships Bled - Australian team manager
1990 - World Championships Lake Barrington - Australian team manager
1991 - World Championships Vienna - Australian team manager
1991-96 (incl) - Victorian Councillor on Rowing Australia.
1992 - Olympic Games - section manager rowing
1992 - present - Trustee of the Mercantile Foundation (Chairman 2004 onwards)
1994 - Patron, Melbourne Rowing Club
1995 - FISA umpires licence gained
1996 - Olympic Games - section manager rowing
1997 - FISA Masters - jury member
1997-2004 - Club President
1999 - World Championships - jury member
2000 - Olympic Games - jury member
2001 - present - APS Head of the River -Referee
2002 - World Masters Games - President of the Jury
2003 - World Championships - jury member
2004 - 2009 - Chairman of the RA Umpires Committee
2005 - Mercantile's Dr R A Cooper award for outstanding service to the club during the season
2005 - present - Trustee of the Rowing Australia Bromley Fund (currently Chairman)
2006 - 2013 - President of Rowing Victoria
2008 - Life membership of Rowing Australia
2008 - World Cup 3 and qualification regatta Poznan - jury member
2009 - World Cup 3 Lucerne - jury member
2010 - Organising Committee Australian Championships
2010-14 - Creator of the Victorian Rowing Hall of Fame and member of the Rowing Victoria Awards Committee
2011 - World Cup 3 Lucerne - jury member
2013 - FISA Masters Varese - jury member
2013 - 2019 - Rowing Australia Board member
2014 - World Cup 1 Sydney - jury member
2014 - Rowing Victoria's William Waterfield Award for outstanding service to the sport of rowing in Victoria
2014 - Victorian Olympic Committee's Julius L Patching Sports Official of the Year Award winner.
2015 - World Cup 2 Varese - jury member
2015 - Life membership of Rowing Victoria Inc
2015 - Rowing contributor, 'Sport in Victoria - A History' edited by Dave Nadel and Graeme Ryan, published by Ryan Publishing 2015
2016 - World Coastal Championships Monaco, jury member
2016 - Contributor, 'Paris or the Bush' a documentary film written and produced by Wayne Groom and Carolyn Bilsborow, Australian International Pictures
2017-19 - Chairman of the Australian King's Cup Centenary Committee
2018 - Rowing Victoria 40 year umpiring award
2018-present - Executive Producer of a documentary being developed on the 1919 King's Cup
2019 - Publisher of "Pulling Through - the Story of the King's Cup" by Dr Bruce Coe
2019-2022- Club Secretary
2019 - present - Treasurer, Victorian Oarsmen and Women's Association of Victoria
2019-20 - Provider of all images to "Looking Back, Rating High" Volumes 1 and 2 by Dr Robin Poke, published by Walla Walla Press
2021 - Rowing Victoria's Bob Duncan Umpiring Award for excellence in umpiring
2021 - Rowing Australia's Official of the Year
2023 - Appointed Co-Patron of Mercantile Rowing Club
2023 - Created Australian Rowing Images website to store hundreds of thousands of current and historical rowing photographs
2025 - World Rowing Masters Banyoles ESP - jury member
Editor, and to a large degree author, of this website, the History of Australian Rowing.
Owner of the Hebfotos photo collection which is used extensively on both his websites.
1974 National Championship Lightweight Eight - bow seat
David Colvin, 2015 (updated 2025)