THIS DAY IN OUR PAST

The following events took place on March 3 in the years identified:

1953:dynamic Ron Cooper, the junior who hit the headlines in 1952 with a win of the All-Jamaica Hard Courts and a defeat of Lester Kirkcaldy in the All-Jamaica, wins his first ‘international victory’ on home soil, defeating Guido Lacarazza of Colombia in the Caribbean Lawn Tennis Championships at the Montego Bay Country Club. It could not properly be called an upset, since Guido is ranked at No. 3 in Colombia and Jamaicans would like to feel that their standard is at least on par with that of the South American republic. But it is a good win for Cooper, who is facing a man of experience and skill who had, a few days earlier, taken Eddie Aris to three sets.

1974:Michael Prime Minister Manley and Mrs Manley will be the special guests of National Sports Limited at the performance of Wuhan Acrobatic Troupe of the People’s Republic of China in the National Arena. The Chinese performers continue to thrill large audiences in their two shows as daring feats of acrobatic juggling and balancing are the features of the show. There will be another show in the arena on March 4, starting at 7:30 p.m., after which the troupe moves on for performances in the Odeon Theatre, Mandeville, on Thursday, March 7, and the Palladium Theatre in Montego Bay on Saturday, March 9.

1974:Roy Playing off 20, Abrahams win the Philip Challenge Trophy from a field of 212 golfers at the Caymanas Golf and Country Club. He collected the top score of 43 points in the Stableford (Method A) on 7/8 handicap. Runner-up in the men’s division is the club’s vice-captain H. Laman. Barbara Laman tops the women’s ranks with 41 points, followed by Carmen Abrahams, Constant Spring Golf Club’s women’s captain, with 37 points. Jan Romme, wife of the Philip’s representative in the island, hands out the prizes to the men, while John Andrews, wife of Homelectric executive, give prizes to the winning women.

– The Gleaner Archives