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Month: June 2021

How to get your Monaco ‘Health pass’

by: Cassandra Tanti
25/06/2021

Monaco citizens and residents can now apply for the Principality’s version of the ‘Health pass’ to be used throughout Monaco and the EU, with an operational date set for 5th July. Here’s how it works.
Minister of State Pierre Dartout outlined the aim of Monaco’s health pass at a press conference on Thursday, saying, “We made a commitment on one point, among others, that Monegasques and residents would have the health pass at the beginning of July. The objective was to allow Monegasque nationals and residents to travel under the same conditions as all other Europeans even though Monaco is not part of the European Union.”
The Prince’s Government will distribute two types of Health Pass: the Monaco Safe Pass, which is valid in Monaco and France, and the European Health Pass, which will be acknowledged by European Union countries and those with agreements with France and the EU such as Switzerland.

The pass will be in the form of a QR code which can either be photographed, issued on paper or in digital version. It can be used by Monegasque citizens and residents who are fully vaccinated, have received a negative PCR test or have recently recovered from the virus.
Vaccinated or recently recovered people will be able to apply for the pass online at covid.mc from Friday 25th June and it will be emailed out from 5th July.
Those vaccinated after 5th July will receive a sms alerting them that their pass is available. It will be sent via email, or can be collected in paper version from a counter at the Rainier III Auditorium – the new vaccination centre.
A traffic light system will also be in play – showing green for people whose vaccination was completed more than 14 days previously, have a negative PCR test of less than 48 hours, or a certificate of recovery of between 15 days and less than six months.
According to the government, Monaco has been working on developing the pass since March, but were delayed due to a lag time in the European Union. Now the EU has finalised its pass system, Monaco has been able to adapt and is ready for a roll out to the public.
“It was a digital challenge, but today we are going to offer you a system that will make it possible to facilitate, very concretely, the movement of Monegasques and residents,” said Frédéric Genta, the Interministerial Delegate in Charge of the Digital Transition.
 
Photo by Michael Alesi / Government Communication Department
 
 

Season over for Roca team

by: Stephanie Horsman
25/06/2021

AS Monaco Basketball’s season is over after falling to JDA Dijon Basket in the semi-final round of the Jeep Elite Championship, leaving them with an overall fourth place finish.

It was a Jeep Elite good season that was well-fought for by the Roca boys, and they fought right up to the very end. In the semi-final match away from home against Dijon on Thursday, the team was down four of their star players – Mathias Lessort, Ibou Fall Faye, Will Yeguete and Damien Inglis, putting them on the back foot, especially against a team as strong as their opponent.

The final score was 68 to 79.

“The difference between the two teams was our start to the match,” said ASM back Abdou N’Doye. “They attacked very hard. We were behind the whole match, we did not manage to make a run or to take the momentum at least four times. It was played on details.”

Despite the disappointment of not going onto the finals, the team has much to be proud of this season, including their spectacular Euro Cup 7 win.

“The season has come to an end,” said Coach Zvezdan Mitrovic after the match. “Bravo to Dijon who was stronger in the conditions of this half. We fought for victory until two minutes from the end with a big heart. I want to send from the whole club a huge thank you to all my players for an incredible season they have given us.

“It was an exceptional season, a historic and unforgettable Euro Cup campaign, everything that happened next was not our fault, we would have liked to defend our chances normally but it was not possible. We will have no regrets because until the end we did the maximum and I am really very, very proud of my guys.”

 

ASM full-back Marcos Knight added, “I’m proud of my team, of my teammates, proud of to have participated in this fantastic European venture. This EuroCup title is ours and no one will take it away from us. We fought with our weapons, we were missing four interiors and under these conditions the equation was very complicated, but we fought to the end and that is the most important. We have always reacted professionally and above all we will remember the exceptional heart of this Roca team.”

Monaco made 26 out of 58 shots, including five for 26 three-pointers. They collected 34 rebounds, with Rasid Mahalbasic, who had a superb night, taking 14 on his own, five steals, and 18 assists, again with Mahalbasic standing out with 10.

Team Captain Dee Bost was high scorer with 15 points, followed by Axel Julien with 13, Rob Gray and Marcos Knight were next up tied with nine points apiece.

Now the team will go on a well-deserved summer holiday after a truly unforgettable season.

 
 
Monaco Life with AS Monaco Basketball press release, image by AS Monaco Basketball
 
 

Venturi Racing takes win in Mexico  

by: Stephanie Horsman
24/06/2021

After a six-week hiatus, Monaco-based Rokit Venturi Racing was back in action again for their first Formula E race held in Puebla, Mexico.

Venturi Racing resumed its season seven­ campaign with a trip to sun-drenched Mexico in the season’s fourth double header event at the Autodromo Miguel E. Abed.

Driver Edoardo Mortara was on brilliant form in the qualifiers, progressing to Super Pole twice. This left the team in an incredibly strong position for both E-Prix events. Starting in sixth, he crept his way up to third, giving him his second podium of the season in the first race.

The second race came only one day later, and Mortara started strong from his number three pole position. After an excellently executed race, the Swiss-Italian pilot went on to win the race. He led 27 of the 32 laps in race, giving the team 25 points and putting him in the top spot in the standings, with a 10-point lead over number two driver Robin Frijns.

Teammate Norman Nato finished 14th in the first race and was not able to complete the second race, though he performed well. Nonetheless, their combined points haul has raised the team’s standings from 10th place to 6th literally overnight

This was the first win since season five at the Hong Kong E-Prix, bringing an end to a 834-day winless streak and giving the team a 40 point boost in the standings, the most they have ever had in a single race weekend.

Venturi Racing’s next race will be held in New York City on 10th and 11th July where drivers zip around the streets of Brooklyn with the majestic Manhattan skyline as a backdrop.

 
Photo: Rokit Venturi Racing Press Centre
 
 
 

Monaco bans smoking and vaping on beaches

by: Cassandra Tanti
24/06/2021

The government has decided to make all beaches in the Principality non-smoking this summer for the comfort of beach-goers and to protect the environment.
For over a decade, the Principality has run the ‘Monaco Plage Propre’ campaign, providing sun-seeking smokers with free self-service ashtrays to keep the beaches clean.
But on Thursday, the government announced that it will ban smoking altogether on beaches from this Saturday 26th June to Thursday 30th September.
The rule will apply to the new Larvotto beach, set to reopen soon to the public, as well as the Plage du Solarium near quai Casiraghi.
The ban applies to both tobacco and electronic cigarettes.
There will be designated areas for smokers on some beaches, identified by a tick sign, except the Pêcheurs beach because of its small size.
“Through this action, the Principality wishes to protect its population from the risks associated with passive smoking, and to guarantee the balance of its natural environment,” said the government in a statement.
 
 
 
Photo by Strauss Western on Unsplash
 
 
 

Monaco's ‘Summer of Dance’

by: Stephanie Horsman
24/06/2021

Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo is celebrating the return of live shows with two summer highlights this July.
To kick off the start of the 2021 edition of ‘L’Été Danse’ (Summer of Dance), the troupe will perform two creations by Mimoza Koike and Julien Guérin, both members of the ballet, from 15th to 17th July. With the full support of Artistic Director Jean-Christophe Maillot, these two young talents will bring their own new ballets to life over the three nights. Koike’s dance spectacle is called Tsunagu, a journey paying tribute to the people and places that shaped her artistic personality and the naturalism and poetry of her choreographic art with music by Iiia Osokin.
Also on the bill is Le temps du Tendre by Guérin with music by Vivaldi, who looks at love through the eyes of the 17th century approach to it. For Guérin, love is one of the “essential reasons for living. Love — true love shared — has always remained the most elusive and unintelligible of emotions. Without it, life is neither possible nor worth living. It is the driving force that moves us, empowers us, embraces us and sometimes even overpowers us. An overwhelming attachment to someone else, sublimated or incarnate.”

Photo of Mimoza Koike’s ‘Tsunagu’ by Takashi Shikama

Next up, from 22nd to 24th July, the dancers will take audiences on a journey to the shores of the Mediterranean with two creations.
The first, In Memorium by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, a former winner of the Nijinsky Award for Emerging Choreographers at the Monaco Dance Forum, was created back in 2004 for the Ballets de Monte-Carlo. This haunting ballet asks audiences to remember those who are no longer with us and will be accompanied by A Filetta, a Corsican musical group who will add their voices to the dancer’s moves.
This is described as “the presence of the dead persisting only through the memories they leave with the living. Some archaic rituals take the form of dances in honour of the dead. This bond between reality and memory is at the heart of In Memoriam.”
The second piece will be Core Meu by Jean-Christophe Maillot, which combines the Apulian Tarantella with classical ballet, an unusual but evocative and joy-filled mix. Antonio Castrignano and Taranta Sounds will accompany the dance.
All shows will be performed at the Grimaldi Forum and all start at 7pm. For tickets and more info, visit the ballets website at www.balletsdemontecarlo.com
 
 
Top photo by Alice Blangero
 

Twins all smiles as they embrace palace duties

by: Stephanie Horsman
24/06/2021

Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella are Monaco’s new socialites. After appearing with their father at the weekend’s Rugby Sevens tournament, they were by his side again on Wednesday for the Festival of Saint Jean. 
The Princely twins were on good form on Tuesday 23th June as they joined their father, Prince Albert II, for the Festival of Saint Jean, in celebration of Saint John the Baptist.
After attending a religious ceremony in the Palace’s Palantine Chapel, the traditional “batafoegu” bonfire was lit in the Palace Square as the Prince and his young children looked on from a palace balcony.
Gabriella wore a blue and white striped cotton summer dress, whilst her brother wore a checked blue and white shirt, and both were impeccably behaved as they watched the scene below.
The Prince’s Palace shared pictures of the evening on its Facebook page:


The Festival of Saint Jean is held each year on 23rd and 24th June and is hailed as a celebration of enlightenment and joy, as well as the birthday of the saint. The two-day fest is marked by fire and light, representing the longest day of the year.
Saint Jean’s birthday has been fixed as 24th June, but the celebrations start the evening before in Monaco at sunset. Normally there is a parade with music and dancing in folk costume to accompany the bonfire, but due to the ongoing health situation, only the bonfire tradition went forward this year.
On the evening of the 24th, the bonfire moves to the Place des Moulins where a religious ceremony takes place prior at Saint Charles Church.

Photo of Prince Albert and son Prince Jacques at the Rugby Sevens tournament by Eric Mathon / Prince’s Palace 

Meanwhile, Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella were all smiles as they accompanied their father to the Rugby Sevens Olympic qualifying tournament at the Louis II Stadium on Sunday, where they happily had their picture taken with the Monaco Sevens mascot.
They also joined Prince Albert at the high-profile Monaco Grand Prix in late May. Their mother Princess Charlene was in South Africa and unable to attend due to an ENT infection.
 
 
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Top photo by Eric Mathon / Prince’s Palace