Fragments of FranceIn the old industrial basin of Lorraine, the historic steelworks gave way to a golf course in 2011. Resting in the middle of the course, the blast furnace continues to remind senior executives from Belgium and Luxembourg of this working past to perfect their swing .
On this sunny Sunday at the end of September, the atmosphere is friendly at the golf course of Longwy, in Meurthe-et-Moselle. On the training ground, the regulars greet each other warmly. The familiarity is required. Especially at the club house, where we meet for the “19e hole “, the golfer’s third half, after circling for four to five hours around the previous 18.
“Golf has given a little life back to the city which has turned into a dormitory town, but it is not enough to revitalize everything”, says Valérie Carradori, who has just returned from a competition in the Jura. This dark-haired fifty-something who lives in the neighboring town of Longlaville comes here four to five times a week and rarely plays alone. On the terrace of the club house with a view of the course, she is also often hailed by colleagues who have come to hear the news. “Here golfers are a big family “, she confides.
Above all, a large family of cross-border workers. At the entrance to the golf course the French, Belgian, Luxembourgish, German, Spanish and European flags fly. You even hear Italian speaking. In the parking lot, the vast majority of BMW, Porsche and other Tesla license plates display the Luxembourgish L. Often company cars made available by companies.
You end up getting lost geographically: in the mouths of golfers, ” here “ refers as much to Longwy as to Luxembourg, 5 kilometers away. “There are around 15% of Luxembourgers, 20% of Belgians and the others come from the Longwy basin, explains Bernard Carminati, president of the Longwy Golf Sports Association. There have never been relationship problems between people. “ The regular of the place, Valérie Carradori, remarks: “We play around nicely with each other, but there are no clans. “
Rust of the past
Between two swings, it is not uncommon to talk about “business”. Valérie Carradori has not worked for twenty years but does not hesitate to highlight the companies of her husband. The latter took over the family group specializing for seventy years in green spaces, swimming pools and construction, with one company in France and another in Luxembourg. “Discussions start from a common passion, golf, and allow people to talk about work, to exchange business cards, explains Valérie Carradori. The other day I gave my husband’s to a golfer who needed a quote for building a pool and he contacted him. “
Between sport and business, regulars no longer pay attention to the blast furnace lying on the grass. Yet the imposing block of rusty scrap clashes amid shades of green. This vestige of the past recalls what one forgets while strolling on the hilly course: before the opening of the 130 hectare golf course in 2011, there was a steelworks here.
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