Andrew's Story
Andrew Withers began rowing at Melbourne Grammar School, competing in the school’s first eight in 1973 and 1974. He helped Melbourne Grammar win the national schoolboy eight championship in 1974 before joining Melbourne’s Mercantile Rowing Club. Still only 18, Withers earned his first senior Victorian selection for the King’s Cup in 1975. Withers made his senior Australian debut in the coxed four at the 1978 World Championships. He joined the Australian men’s eight for the 1979 World Championships, where the crew reached the final and placed fourth. Domestically, he was part of Victoria’s victorious King’s Cup eights in 1979 and 1980 and stroked a Mercantile crew to the 1980 national coxless four championship.
Aged 23, Withers contested the men’s eight at the Moscow 1980 Olympic Games. Australia finished third in its heat but won the repechage to advance to the medal race. The crew completed the final in 5 minutes, 56.74 seconds to place fifth. Withers continued rowing in 1981, winning another national coxless four title before concluding his Australian representative career.
