Looking Back

From the Sunday Times 50 years ago

CRYING from sheer joy and excitement, Mr Sydney Laird, the trainer, led Colorado King into the winning enclosure at Greyville today as thousands roared and cheered.

Scenes of excitement seldom equalled on a South African racecourse greeted the great win of the great champion.

Sydney Laird had tears of joy in his eyes, but if any bookmakers were crying it was not with joy. A fortune had been poured on to Colorado King ever since the betting opened, and the worst fears of the bookmakers were realised.

Leased from the Birch brothers by Mr Piet Louw, a Stellenbosch wine farmer, Colorado King is the only horse Mr Louw owns at the moment.

Mr Louw shares the winning stake of R20 000 with the breeders, the Birch Brothers of Dordrecht. — July 7 1963

From the Sunday Times 25 years ago

A RENEGADE group of former Zimbabwean policemen now based in Pretoria were behind the botched attempt to spring five compatriots held in a Harare prison.

The group — dubbed the “Crazy Gang”— once had links to South African authorities but apparently launched their madcap escapade to rescue friends and relatives off their own bat.

Furious South African security sources claimed this week that Pretoria’s intelligence network in Zimbabwe could be damaged because of the exploit.

“It’s time these heroes realised the Rhodesian bush war is long over and gone”, one source told the Sunday Times. — July 10 1988