30th Covid-related fatality

The death of a 68-year-old resident marks the 30th Covid-related fatality in the Principality since the pandemic began.
The government announced the death on Monday evening. It comes as five new cases of coronavirus were detected on 5th April, bringing the total to 2,334.
Meanwhile, 22 patients are being cared for at the Princess Grace Hospital, plus an additional six people are in intensive care.
On Friday, the government revealed that 11,715 people have been vaccinated in Monaco with their first shot, bringing the total to 30.83% of the population. Meanwhile, 8,795 people have also received their second jab, equivalent to 70% of the vaccinated group.
The figures show that the government is continuing its recent trend of vaccinating around 1,000 people a week.
 
Photo of Princess Grace Hospital Centre by Michael Alesi / Government Communications Department
 
 

YouTube star backs Monaco Esports

Monaco Esports has added two new faces to their organisation, naming YouTube gaming star Jelle “Jelly” Van Vucht as International Ambassador and Daan Stots as Global Partnership Director.
Monaco resident and YouTube superstar Jelle “Jelly” Van Vucht was named Monaco Esports’ International Ambassador “for the development of its activities and reputation” on 28th March.
The 24-year-old Dutchman known professionally as Jelly became famous for uploading gaming videos on his YouTube channel, JellyYT, which are known for being family-friendly and comical. He also promotes content creators trying to establish themselves in the world of gaming with the help of a second channel called GTA5Videos. Additionally, he owns a successful clothing line.
Jelly has more than 21 million followers on his YouTube channels. He is also a member of a small group named ‘Robust’ who play games like Scrap Mechanic, Gmod and GTA and who upload videos on various gaming issues on their respective YouTube channels.
Meanwhile, Monaco resident Daan Stots is to take on the role of Global Partnership Director.
Stots, also Dutch, is the self-proclaimed “Director of Awesomeness” at Stotsy, a company that organises experiences to the Formula 1, Historic GP and Formula E in Monaco.He is also the Chief Growth Officer at The Sixty-Nine, a private members club for entrepreneurs.
Monaco Esports was founded in 2014 and is linked to the Monegasque Esports Federation. The Federation’s aim is to promote and develop esports in Monaco and Europe by offering up competitive teams and organising Esport events. Louis Ducruet, son of Princess Stephanie and sport enthusiast, was named as the Federation’s President in 2019.
Of the new appointments, he said, “It is an honour for the Federation and myself to be able to count on people like Jelly and Daan. Their support and help will be of great use in our future projects.”
Equally, Boris Fedoroff, President of Monaco Esports and co-founder of Monaco Esports Federation, has encouraging words to say of the new additions. “The Principality of Monaco is a land of welcome for many young talents throughout the world. The fact that the world’s biggest gaming YouTuber has become our International Ambassador confirms this. The Monegasque Esports Federation and the Monaco Esports Club have been working for several years to make the Principality of Monaco shine at an international level. We are delighted to welcome a partnership expert like Daan, whose role is to identify strategic partners. I’m sure we’ll be hearing a lot about this Dutch duo.”
 
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AS Monaco secure third in Ligue 1

In the first of two games being played between Monaco and Metz, Monaco took control, beating their opponents soundly four to nil on Saturday at home in Stade Louis II.
It was a resounding victory for the Red and Whites when they squared off Saturday against Metz, but it was still anyone’s game to win for the whole first half.
Both Monaco and Metz played well-organised games the first 45 minutes, but not a single player was able to convert. The closest Monaco came was Kevin Volland who got a rebounded shot from an attempt by Alekdansdr Golovin. The header hit the post but didn’t quite make it in.
Les Grenats had a shot as well at 41 minutes when Lamine Gueye made a beautiful shot on goal, ultimately blocked by the ever-vigilant Benjamin Lecomte.
It wasn’t until after halftime that things got interesting. About five minutes after returning from the locker rooms, Cesc Fabregas opened scoring giving him his second goal this season. Volland was hot on his heels and two minutes later knocked one between the posts, doubling the score for Monaco.
Then came the double whammy by Team Captain Wissam Ben Yedder. Played in by Caio Henrique, Ben Yedder landed the ball below the crossbar at 77 minutes in, followed by an end-of-game beauty just a minute before the game’s end, leaving Monaco the undisputed winners with a final score of 4 to 0.
This victory pushed Monaco into a tight third place spot in the Ligue 1 standings, a mere one point ahead of Lyon and one point behind PSG.
“I know we are provisionally third, but we must not get excited,” Coach Niko Kovac said after the game. “There are seven matches to play and 21 points left to distribute. Winning was our goal today. There is nothing more to say.”
Monaco faces off against Metz again on 6th April where they will see if they can keep up the pace or if Metz take their revenge.
 
Monaco Life with AS Monaco press release, photo by AS Monaco 
 
 
 
 

Roca chalk up another victory

The Roca team fought tooth and nail against a determined Orleans team on Saturday and in the end came out on top, holding onto first place in the Jeep Elite standings and winning the day 92 to 80.

AS Monaco Basketball have been extremely busy. Between regular season Jeep Elite games and the Euro Cup 7 finals, there has barely been time for them to breathe. But this doesn’t stop them from winning games, and win they did on Saturday night against Orleans at home at Gaston Médecin.

It seemed like the game was going to be a cinch as the Roca team held onto the lead, sometimes quite a substantial one, for most of the first half. Then in the third quarter Orleans sprang to life and the shift was immediately clocked by Coach Zvezdan Mitrovic who reminded his players to “watch the offensive rebound”.

The Orleanais not only caught up but took the lead, prompting Monaco to fight back. The two teams were neck and neck up until the very end when the Roca boys stepped it up and sealed the deal with a 92 to 80 win.

“It was a crazy game against Orleans,” said Assistant Coach Mirko Ocokoljic. “They came back after the break with a lot of energy. We also had to share the minutes in light of Tuesday’s final. We probably spent some energy at the end, but everyone ended up in good health, without injury, that’s good. This first match of the semi-final will be decisive.”

AS Monaco made 26 shots out of 47 on the night with six for 17 at three point range. There were an astounding 42 rebounds, 14 steals, 17 stray balls and 12 assists.

Rob Gray was high scorer this game with 16 points, followed by Mathias Lessort with 13, Ibrahima Faye with 12 and Damien Inglis with 11.

Everyone is waiting to see if Monaco can continue to keep their heads in the game for Tuesday night’s semi-final match against Gran Canaria for the Euro Cup 7 finals. The team has home field advantage, and with the schedule as gruelling as this, they will need the rest to stay on top.

 
 

Spotlight on successful women in business

Every March, International Women’s Day shines a light on the challenges facing half of humanity. Therefore, the Monaco Economic Board (MEB) wanted to give the floor to female leaders who, through their stories, have shown that success is perfectly aligned with being a woman.
The MEB invited businesswomen to take part in a MEBinaire on 8th March, International Women’s Day, in partnership with the Women’s Rights Committee and the Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Monaco (AFCEM).
At the opening, Céline Cottalorda, Interministerial Delegate for Women’s Rights, gave a presentation on working women, citing figures from the Monegasque Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies (IMSEE). She said that women’s success “requires breaking the glass ceiling” and that for the future, we must “put forward inspiring examples so that young people can follow the path”.
Some of those examples were presented during the virtual event.
Johanna Houdrouge, Vice-president at Mercure International and President of AFCEM, presented the values ​​and ambitions of the association which she took over as head this year and gave her point of view as an entrepreneur, saying “It is high time that professional equality should be everyone’s concern and not just women”.
Four female business leaders and members of the MEB followed, speaking of their accomplishments as well as their difficulties in having to show “twice, rather than once, the fact that a woman can run a business”.
Anne-Marie Noir, CEO of ASEPTA Laboratories and Vice-President of AFCEM, Victoria Stevenson, General Director of Columbus Hotel Monte-Carlo, Claire Gaven, Director of Life and Business Development at Suisscourtage Assurances and Emmanuelle Bouvet, President of Monétique Bouvet Solutions and Deputy Vice-President and Treasurer of AFCEM all spoke about their visions, each with their own words and experiences, all driven by a tremendous desire to act and succeed despite the pitfalls.
It was a 100% female MEBinary, as it was led by Virginie Gianangeli, MEB Operations and Membership Manager, and Delphine Quilichini, MEB Communications Officer.
Highlighting women’s success and their sense of entrepreneurship was not limited to the MEBinaire. The Monaco Economic Board says it wishes to shine the spotlight on the role of women in the economy throughout the entire year to support the conviction that success has no gender and is always richer in its diversity.