Mark down November 1 and 2, 2025, as the days Australian rowing changed. Canberra’s Golden Oar regatta promises many things, not least the prizemoney on offer. It’s unsurprising to see such a strong field in the U19 mixed quad with a $10,000 carrot dangling – but the question is, who’s going home with it?
Note: At the time of writing, several crews had not been finalised, including those of coxswains. Coxswains will be vitally important in the 3km time trial, with several hard turns that can catch even experienced rowers out. Any crews with only four names do not currently have a coxswain selected.
The ACT locals
Local rowers are excited about the Golden Oar – and for good reason. There hasn’t been a national regatta for U19s on Lake Burley Griffin since the 1972 Australian Women’s Championships. The locals have some pretty strong crews entered too, not least the Canberra and ANU composite of Zara Turner, Tahlia Turnbull, Cameron Schmidt and Harrison Braithwaite. Turner won the schoolgirl single sculls at the 2024 Australian Rowing Championships (ARC), while Braithwaite won the U17 single in 2024 and the schoolboy quad in 2025. Schmidt won bronze in the 2025 schoolboy single, while Turnbull won bronze in the 2025 club women’s four and the B-final of the U19 single. In a format that includes a 3km time trial, local knowledge could prove beneficial.
Black Mountain uses the Red Shed more than anyone, so don’t be surprised if either of their crews causes a shock or two. Amelie Brennan made the schoolgirl quad A-final at the 2025 ARC, while Ronja Staerker-Ashby represented the ACT in the Victoria Cup. Riley Dale and Joshua Miller also have experience racing at major regattas, having competed at this year’s nationals. The Black Mountain, Daramalan, and Marist composite of Ava Wrathall, Olivia Spurrett, Luca Storgato, and Felix Pentony are all young for their age group but will enjoy the experience.
There are several entries for Marist College, and any crew featuring them and the schoolgirl quad champions, Canberra Girls Grammar, will be very hard to beat. Likewise, crews from Canberra Grammar and Radford College know how to win on home water; unfortunately, with no crews available, we cannot provide any further information.
The Visitors
What’s better than one Moloney? Why not two, with 2024 U19 world champions Matias and Tomas Moloney joining Isabelle Yardley, fellow 2025 U19 representative Mika Naito and coxswain Jethro Chapman in a typically strong Sydney Rowing Club quad. Naito and Chapman were in Canberra recently for the Col Panton Memorial Marathon, a race renowned for its overtakes and general chaos near the finish line.
Sydney University has its own Australian U19 reps too. Patricia Boland, Luke Purdie and Gus Ciesiolka join Summer Phillips in another strong Sydney-based quad. That experience should see them in the A-final for the sprints, although the choice of coxswain will be crucial. UTS Haberfield are always tough to beat too, with Charlotte Ollivier, Charles Brann, Rober Ollivier and Madeleine Swain pulling on the black, white and teal. Swain had her own Trakai experience, sitting in the seven-seat of the U19 eight that led through the first half of the final.
One of the pleasing stories out of this year’s ARC was Mosman Rowing Club’s resurgence. Freida Kirkham won silver in the U19 women’s quads, while Ewan Humphreys and Lleyton Schomann won silver in the U17 men’s coxed quad. Add in Heidi Heap’s final appearance in the U17 singles, and there’s every chance the red and white hoops will go home with some medals and prize money in their luggage.
Finally, there are few schools more feared than Kinross Wolaroi. Their schoolgirl eight swept all before them until the national titles, with the schoolboy quad doing the same. Their three entries are a very evenly matched mix of senior and junior rowers, with the crew of Isabel Grout, Hamish Searle, Toby Buckland, Lucy Reidy and Jane Bruce possibly edging out Angus Sawtell, Rahni Jarick, Alice Dymock, Heathcliffe Bell and Jock Petersen, and Grace Tancred, Ruby Leigo, Lachie Soster, Ash Robinson and Zoe McKay.
Prediction
Who’s walking away with the win? It’s hard to go past Sydney Rowing Club in most Australian regattas – so we won’t. We’ll tip them to finish ahead of Sydney University and the Canberra/ANU Composite, although a Marist College/Canberra Girls Grammar composite would be tough to beat. We’ll also keep an eye out for the coxswain selections, too.
