On Saturday morning, Edward Millear should have slid into his unisuit, thrown on a pair of sunnies, and joined his teammates on the Yarra River for a shot at lifting one of the coveted challenge cups at the Australian Henley Regatta.
Instead, his rowboat glided through the brown waters with an empty seat – a touching tribute to the much-loved 17-year-old Melbourne Grammar School student who died after suffering a medical episode during training on Tuesday.
Edward Millear’s teammates before doing a memorial “row past” to honour the 17-year-old.Credit: Luis Enrique Ascui
As rowing crews prepared their boats for the competition early on Saturday morning, dozens of floral tributes lined the entrance to the Simon Fraser Memorial Boat House – the shed where Millear collapsed while using a stationary rower.
“[Edward] was adored by his friends, peers, and coaches and known for his friendly smile, big presence, and kind nature. We will miss him dearly,” a message by the Melbourne Grammar School Boat Club committee, left atop a bouquet of white flowers, read.
A message scribbled on the brown wrapping of another bouquet echoed the sentiment: “Forever in our hearts. Rest easy big Ed”.
Melbourne Grammar School student Edward Millear, 17, died after collapsing during rowing training.
Another thanked Millear for his words of encouragement and fun demeanour, adding, “You were, and will remain, an inspiration”.
Dozens of people gathered on the banks of the Yarra to watch the regatta on Saturday morning. Some brought out camping chairs and picnic rugs to settle in for the day, while others crowded together under the shade of the oak trees lining Boathouse Drive.
Rowers and their schoolmates eagerly watched the action from the edge of the river bank, cheering their friends on in the final stretches of their races.
A pop-up bar at Henley Landing, near the Swan Street Bridge, served cold drinks to those braving the 30-degree heat. By the boat sheds, the members of a Rotary Club hawked sausage sizzles and plates of paella out of a marquee.
In the regatta, which is considered one of Australia’s premier rowing events, teams battle it out to conquer the “Henley Mile” for a chance at winning one of several challenge cups.
The 1600-metre course stretches from the Punt Road jetty to the old Oarsmen’s Memorial Judge Box in the CBD. A smaller, 800-metre course starts halfway between the Swan Street and Morell bridges.
Millear was a strong, fit teenager who took his sport seriously, and trained and competed with Melbourne Grammar’s second VIII crew. Hundreds of students from 11 private schools participate in the highly competitive Associated Public Schools’ rowing competitions.
Edward’s teammates embrace before taking to the water on Saturday.Credit: Luis Enrique Ascui
As the regatta went into a lunch break at noon on Saturday, a small crowd of Millear’s teammates, friends, and rowers from other schools gathered outside the boathouse to observe a minute’s silence.
They fought back the tears as they embraced each other, before placing a bouquet of white flowers on Millear’s usual seat and carrying the eight-seater boat into the water for the memorial “row past”.
Most rowers in the competition wore black armbands to honour Millear’s memory.
School staff members place a bouquet of white flowers on Edward’s seat.Credit: Luis Enrique Ascui
The 17-year-old’s death has raised questions about the intensity of the training programs at schools, with parents, a former coach, and a cardiologist expressing concern about some of the pressure it puts teenagers under.
Senior students at some of Melbourne’s highest-fee paying schools can be required to train up to six mornings and five afternoons a week, in addition to weekend competitions.
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