Italian Day a hit at Ladysmith Country Club
Our local contingent of descendants did their heritage proud by producing an iconic golf day that would match any of their more famous labels
The history of Italian immigration to South Africa has received infrequent attention and is a somewhat elusive field.
It is reported that the first Italians, Giovanni da Empoli and Alfonso de Albuquerque, set foot on South African soil as early as 1503 when they landed at Mossel Bay, then called the Bay of Saint Biagios.
It is estimated that from 1876 to 1976, as few as 460,000 Italians arrived on our shores, with the first major influx around the time of the diamond and gold rush of the late 1800s and then with the arrival of approximately 100,000 POWs from 1941 to 1947.
While Italians served on both sides of the Boer War, the most notable was Ricchiardi’s Legions, which was a volunteer corps made up of a hundred or so local and Argentinian descendants that fought alongside the Boers.
They distinguished themselves for their bravery and skill, and for the assistance in capturing Winston Churchill.
The arrival of the POWs saw them interned at Zonderwater in Cullinan near Pretoria from its humble beginnings of a makeshift camp, it grew into a self-contained city with 14 blocks, divided into four camps, boasting theatres, sports facilities, workshops, hospitals and a printing press producing and issuing a local Italian newspaper with advertising from companies such as Fatti’s & Moni’s.
Various live shows were produced for the inmates, as well as artistic and literary competitions and sports events to keep morale high.
The POWs were allowed to work outside the camp on construction sites, farms and mines.
During and after the war, the Italians who stayed (some came to Ladysmith) played a vital role in the construction and engineering industry, and assisted in the building of the Voortrekker Monument and our very own Catholic Church in Ladysmith.
Italy is famous for its cuisine and wine, and has produced some of the most iconic brands seen in the world today.
Our local contingent of descendants did their heritage proud by producing an iconic golf day that would match any of their more famous labels.
As in any competition, there are upsets where the less-fancied, against all odds, take the podium. Well, this past weekend proved to be such a day as Shane Ristow (not driving a Ferrari) and Corné Stevens (not using Pirelli tyres) swept to victory with 50 points.
Corné and Shane obviously got to grips with the track; a combination of a sturdy Toyota 4×4 fitted with a much more rugged Dunlop Grandtrek tyre for off the fairways travelling.
Our very own fashionista expert, Sipho “Gucci” Hlongwa, playing with Colin “Chinois” Woodall, found a snug fit in second place with a size 49, the course plainly suiting them.
The pairing of Enrico Bozza (who started like a lasagne, firm and cheesy, and ended up like spaghetti and meatballs, with the balls strewn all over the place like spilled spaghetti) and Roy Gibbons (with his swing moving like an extra fine virgin olive oil) had to digest third place.
There were six two-clubs, with Sipho doing the soft shoe Italian shuffle for two them, while the others went to Leon Petersen, Corné Daful, Colin Woodall and Shane Ristow.
The novelty prizes were won by Willie Erasmus, Wayne Bentley, Sipho George Ashi and Patrick Pieterse.
The social bowls was won by Gavin Livingston, Lindy van der Merwe and Anton Cloete, who bowled like the precision and noise of an Italian opera.
Ettienne de Pindray, Lorrain Lee and Doc Magan carved second place out of a slab of the finest Italian marble, while Oscar Balleri, Padma Magan and Glynnis Turconi spluttered along like a misfiring Fiat to finish third.
Pier gave a rousing speech in Italian, which was, well, Greek to most to us, where he congratulated all the winners and thanked those who sponsored. At least I think that is what he said.
To the Italians of Ladysmith, thank you for sharing your Republic Day and heritage with us, and for keeping this fine tradition going.
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