1912 — Rudolph Lewis wins South Africa’s first — and so far only — Olympic cycling gold medal when he finishes first in the road race at the Stockholm Games. The race, organised in a time trial format because local police were worried about regular traffic on the road having to cope with groups of cyclists, started at 2am, with entrants going off every two minutes.
Lewis was the second rider off, leaving at 2.02am. He took an early lead in the 320km race around Lake Malar and eventually finished at 12.44pm, his winning time of 10 hr 42 min 39 sec breaking the course record by nearly 40 minutes. With the first starter dropping out inside the first two hours after smashing his bicycle, Lewis had nobody to pace. But at least he avoided some of the afternoon heat, unlike second-placed Englishman FG Grubb who started at 6.30am and in the end was only fewer than nine minutes slower than Lewis.
The authors of the Olympic report felt that cycling, although popular in Sweden, did not belong on the Olympic programme. “In our opinion, cycling ought not to be included in future Olympic Games. It is a form of sport that thrives best by itself, and it should have its own great international celebrations.” Their epitaph was overstated, however, with cycling featuring at every Olympics since (and before, in fact).
1928 — Tennis player Pat Spence becomes the first South African to win a grand slam title, taking the Wimbledon mixed doubles crown with American Elizabeth Ryan. They beat Australians Jack Crawford and Daphne Akhurst 7-5 6-4 in the final. The inclusion of Spence in the South African tennis rankings a month later caused a furore because he hadn’t been resident in the country for eight years at that stage. But it was argued by the sport’s administrators that he had made himself available to represent South Africa in Davis Cup competitions.
1950 — Defending champion Bobby Locke wins the second of his four British Open golf crowns, shooting a one-under-par 279 at Troon to beat Roberto Di Vicenzo of Argentina by two strokes. Locke’s fellow South African, Eric Moore, ended tied for fifth on three-over 283. The winner’s purse was £300.
1951 — Geoff Chubb finishes with 6/51 as South Africa bowl out England for 211 in the third Test in Manchester for a first-innings deficit of 53 runs.
1972 — Frew McMillan and Bob Hewitt lift their second Wimbledon men’s doubles title, downing Americans Stan Smith and Erik van Dillen 6-2 6-2 9-7 in the final.
1979 — Bob Hewitt and Greer Stevens claim their second Wimbledon mixed doubles crown, again beating countryman Frew McMillan and Betty Stove of Holland, the defending champions, 7-5 7-6 (9-7) in the final.
1985 — South Africa-born Kevin Curren, playing under the US flag, loses 3-6 6-7 (4) 6-7 (3) 4-6 in the Wimbledon final as 17-year-old Boris Becker becomes the youngest men’s winner of the event. Curren had beaten defending champion John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors on the way to the final.
1992 — South Africa plays international soccer for the first time since isolation, taking on Cameroon at King’s Park in Durban in the first game of a three-match series. The hosts won 1-0 after Doctor Khumalo converted from the penalty spot in the 82nd minute.
1999 — High-jumper Hestrie Cloete becomes the first South African to win an event in the Golden League, which was launched the previous year, taking the victory at the Golden Gala meet in Rome with a leap of 2.00m. The Golden League later became the Diamond League.
2007 — A second-string Springbok side, with many of the World Cup-bound players rested, goes down 17-25 to Australia in a Tri-Nations match in Sydney. Flank Wikus van Heerden and wing Breyton Paulse scored tries for the visitors.
2012 — IBF junior-featherweight champion Jeffrey Mathebula becomes the first South African boxer since Brian Mitchell to engage in a unification title bout, but he is beaten on points by star Filipino Nonito Donaire, holder of the WBO belt, in Carson, US.
2015 — Eddie Leie takes 3/16 as the Proteas beat Bangladesh by 31 runs to win the second T20 in Dhaka and with it the series 2-0. Quinton de Kock’s 44 off 31 balls was the top score in South Africa’s total of 169/4. Kyle Abbott and Aaron Phangiso also took three wickets apiece.
2017 — Mohau Mokate scores as Bafana Bafana beat Namibia 1-0 in the consolation Cosafa plate final at Moruleng Stadium near Rustenburg.
2022 — Chrestinah Thembi Kgatlana and Amogelang Motau score in the first half before Linda Motlhalo converts a spot kick to give Banyana Banyana a 3-1 win over Burundi in their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations group match in Rabat.
2024 — Opener Tazmin Brits scores 52 off 39 balls in the second T20 against India in Chennai, helping the South African women to 177/6, but the match is washed out without the home side getting a chance to bat.
2025 — Stand-in captain Wiaan Mulder, resuming on 264, scores an unbeaten 367 before declaring South Africa’s first innings closed on 626/5 in the second Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo. His total was the second-highest undefeated Test score in history and the fifth-highest of all time. It also ranked Mulder fourth among the world’s highest scoring Test batsmen behind Brian Lara (400 not out and 375), Matthew Hayden (380) and Mahela Jayawardene (374). The visitors then claimed 11 wickets before the close of the second day’s play, shutting down Zimbabwe’s first innings for 170.
2025 — Linda Motlhalo and Jermaine Seoposenwe score as Banyana Banyana beat Ghana 2-0 in their opening Women’s Africa Cup of Nations group match in Oujda, Morocco.
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