Ralph Howard
Mortlake Anglican & Chiswick Boat Club (UK) and Banks Rowing Club (VIC)
The following story on Ralph Howard was written by long-standing member of Mortlake Anglican & Chiswick Boat Club, Noel Durkin. In providing his permission for it to be reproduced for this site, he stated: I put the story together with info from Ralph’s daughter Susan (Susie) Howard re his early years. His Anglian friends didn’t know much about Ralph’s history, he was always a quiet man and just turned up at Green’s boathouse one day, where Anglian had quarters, and they signed him on. Anglian amalgamated with Mortlake in 1962 and that’s how it happened. There is also a fair bit about his Australian rowing and competition and numerous successes, from Banks in Melbourne.
Ralph Howard: MAABC’s oldest Vice President - 101 years
Ralph Howard, our oldest Vice President, was born in Berlin on 22 April 1918, where he first started rowing.
With the rise of Hitler and the Nazi regime, non-Germans were being told to leave Germany. In Germany, you took the nationality of your father. Ralph’s father was Czech and his mother Polish - so no choice but to leave where he was born, leave his mother in Berlin and go to his father’s birthplace in Czechoslovakia.
He had at least been allowed to finish his studies and take the exams in Berlin to be an Optician - as was his father. In early 1939 he left Berlin. His father had died in 1936 but his brother, 8 years older, had gone with his father to Czechoslovakia and he too was an Optician and carried on his father’s practice.
The young Optician
In March of ’39, Ralph’s Czech home was taken over by German troops and the Gestapo destroyed their business.
Ralph would listen to Winston Churchill on the BBC overseas service and always referred to Winston as his friend. Churchill promised whoever could make it to Krakow, there was a refugee camp and they would have a chance to be selected by a point system and transported to England via the only port in Poland. So he filled out the necessary papers to be accepted as a refugee.
However he still needed to make his way over the border into Poland and although Poland was still free at that point in time, it was still risky without paper, extremely so with various dubious people offering transport. At the second attempt he managed to cross the border into Poland. One town before Krakow, Polish police came on board his bus wanting to see everyone’s papers. Ralph, as a boy had thought that rowing might help him to grow tall…..ironically his small stature probably saved him. They only checked the adults’ papers.
Then he needed a train but it did not leave until late at night. Having little money, he spent the time walking around and got stopped by police and not speaking Polish he was taken into custody. However, he told them his story and once confirmed they gave him a police escort, seeing him safely to Krakow, where he was registered officially to be included in the selection process for passage to England.
Only two lots made the selections, and Ralph was on the second draft. His boat was one of the last to leave Poland for England. He landed in London in May 1939, aged 21.
He was put into a refugee camp in Kent but ultimately managed to gain work and live in Wembley, sharing a home with some famous ice hockey players and through them met his future wife, Mary.
Ralph and Mary
Ralph was called up and enlisted in the British Army in August 1944 in Maidstone, Kent. The British Army very kindly did not send him to Europe. He went instead to India in 1945 …
which he didn’t like at all and so he did the only thing left to do and volunteered as part of the occupying forces in Japan and served there 1945/46.
He returned to rowing on demob, joining Anglian Boat Club around 1947 … and following on through the amalgamation in 1962 - Mortlake Anglian BC, later Mortlake Anglian & Chiswick and then, and now Mortlake Anglian & Alpha Boat Club.
Mortlake Anglian & Chiswick Boat Club - Centenary year 1977
Tideway Head 1977
Ralph at bow. Johnny Enright at stroke with Ted Rotherham at 2 plus Graham Fitch, John Hart, Mick Williamson, Chalky White with Pauline Churcher Coxing
New MAA Boat House 1999 – new boat and old bloke - John Bryant (Tub)
Ralph was about 67 when he retired.
He had a daughter, Susan (Susie) who had been living in Melbourne for 8 years, so Ralph and Mary decided to join Susan and arrived in Australia in 1985, where Ralph joined Banks Rowing Club, a very competitive and successful club.
Length!
Ralph was always highly competitive and relished every small victory that came his way but his success in competitive rowing blossomed in Australia, with wins in a string of events including:
1987 - Australian Masters, Tasmania Vet F bronze in 4s and 8s;
1989 - Australian Masters, Adelaide Vet H gold in 4s
1991 - Australian Masters, Brisbane Vet F gold in 4s; silver in 8s
1988 - Australian Championships, Penrith Vet F gold 8s, and 1991 gold 4s.
1994 - World Masters, Brisbane : Vet F silver in 8s, Vet G silver in 8s, Vet H gold in 8s and bronze in 4s…and so it continued.
Banks RC named a new boat after him in 2012.
Boat Christening – Banks Rowing Club Australia 2012
Ralph had to cease rowing in 2015, very, very much to his regret but a pace maker and doctor’s orders, made it the only option. Until then he was the world’s oldest competing oarsman.
In 2018, Ralph turned the 100. He had become an Australian Citizen but been allowed to retain his British Citizenship. A letter of congratulation from HRH, and from the Prime Minister, the Governor General of Australia, the Governor of Victoria, the Premier of Victoria and other politicians with presentation at a party, thrown by Banks RC, and they also gave him this –
Presentation blade from Banks Rowing Club Melbourne – 2018
We had a visit from Banks RC at MAA last Summer, who were over on tour and competing at Henley Vets. They are mostly big old blokes with a strong line in high level and some Olympic competition, who turned out for a surprise birthday party this year.
Ralph Howard with rowing mates in Oz on the occasion of his 101st birthday – 22 April 2019
Always enthusiastic, always a gentleman. If anyone is visiting Melbourne, then Banks RC President Jim Lowe, Ralph and Susie most happy to get together and talk rowing – what else?
Very best wishes Ralph – Vice President MAABC
Noel Durkin
Reproduced in March 2026
Postscript
There are many stories of Ralph but one which amused the editor of this site was when he interviewed Ralph in 2009 for an Australian rowing story when he was 91 years old and actively rowing. In response to the question of what he does well in the boat and where is age impacting his rowing, he was confident that rhythm, timing and not upsetting the boat were all good. Whilst it was getting harder to get in and out of the boat, he was still managing that well. However he lamented that he was struggling with the length and strength of the young 75 year olds! Andrew Guerin.