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Month: February 2023

‘75 years of Porsche sports cars’ in Monaco

by: Cassandra Tanti
20/02/2023

The Prince’s car museum is hosting a unique exhibition of vehicles from renowned German sports car manufacturer Porsche, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year.

The Cercle des Amis de la Collection de Voitures de S.A.S. le Prince de Monaco is organising the unique exhibition from 20th February to 20th March 2023.

Founded in 1931 under the name “Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche G.m.b.H., Konstruktionen und Beratung für Motoren und Fahrzeuge”, the Stuttgart-based engineering office has become a cradle of automotive technology and has shaped international series and racing car construction for decades with its numerous innovations.

In 1948, Ferry Porsche realised his dream of a sports car: with his team, he built the Porsche 356 ‘No. 1’ Roadster. It marked the birth of this legendary brand and laid the foundation for an exemplary success story, for the Porsche legend.

The model that followed the 356, the Porsche 911, established the company as one of the world’s leading sports car manufacturers. The Porsche 911, now in its eighth generation, has been constantly refined, with more than one million of this iconic car produced to date.

Porsche’s spirit of innovation is closely linked to motor sport. As early as 1951, the young brand achieved its first-class victory at Le Mans with the 356 SL. To this day, Porsche holds the record of 110 class and 19 overall victories in the Sarthe.

At this exceptional exhibition, the public will be able to discover 12 of Porsche’s most legendary racing and sports cars in the new location of the Car Collection, which was inaugurated just a few months ago on Port Hercule. Some of the cars are on loan from the Porsche Heritage and Museum in Stuttgart. Among them, three famous types of the 911 and a 908 ‘long tail’ will be accompanied by the 917 and 962 C models that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as well as the beautiful 911 GT1 in the colours of Champion Racing, which won the US championship in 1998.

Another 908 ‘short tail’ model from 1969 belonging to the Prince’s collection will also be on display. This competition car was driven by Hans Herrmann and Kurt Ahrens in the 1968 Austrian Grand Prix.

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Photo: The victorious Porsche 917 K at the 1970 24 Hours Of Le Mans with Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood, source 24 Hours of Le Mans. Note: this article was originally published on 1st February. 

Monaco extend unbeaten win with hard-fought win against Brest

by: Luke Entwistle
19/02/2023

AS Monaco, Ligue 1’s only unbeaten side in 2023, continued their impressive streak with a hard-fought victory over strugglers Stade Brestois (1-2) on Sunday. 

The trajectories of Brest’s and Monaco’s seasons may greatly differ, but the three points were far from guaranteed for Philippe Clement’s side as they headed to the Stade Francis-le-Blé. Monaco had lost in their last two visits to the stadium, whilst an injury crisis had enveloped the squad following their impressive midweek Europa League victory over Bayer Leverkusen.

In this context, Clement rung the changes and Malang Sarr, Chrislain Matsima and Eliot Matazo all come into the side. Les Monégasques rarely looked at their fluent best in attack, but they could rely on a stable defensive base, despite fielding an unfamiliar backline against Brest.

Monaco have earned a reputation for attacking efficiency, and they once again showed why on Sunday. Aleksandr Golovin converted Monaco’s only clear-cut chance of the first-half after some intelligent play from Wissam Ben Yedder.

The away side never seemed to get out of first gear, but they didn’t have to. Brest offered very little offensively, and on the rare occasions that Monaco worked their way in behind the Brest defence, they punished them. Myron Boadu had a goal ruled out for a narrow offside but wasn’t to be denied a second time, the Dutch striker tucking home from close-range to double the lead.

Jérémy Le Douaron halved the deficit late on with a sliding finish, but Brest couldn’t force the equaliser. Monaco, therefore, come away with the three points, which further cements their place on the podium and extends their unbeaten run. As well as their 2023 unbeaten streak, Les Monégasques are also unbeaten away from home since 23rd October.

“If I was to take one thing from this match, it would be solidarity. Despite all of the injuries, all the players were ready to perform. At the start of the match, we felt a lack of automatism between players that aren’t used to starting together, but gradually, the team gained confidence and freed itself,” said Clement post-match.

Having consolidated their position on the Ligue 1 podium, attention now immediately shifts to Thursday’s crucial Europa League clash against Bayer Leverkusen. A draw would be enough to allow Les Monégasques to progress.

 

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Photo by AS Monaco

Chic ski resort Courchevel welcomes Prince Albert, Princess Charlene for charity gala

by: Cassandra Tanti
19/02/2023

A charity gala for the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation in the luxurious ski resort of Courchevel lured hundreds of high-profile guests, including the Princely couple and billionaire Jim Ratcliffe.

The children of Courchevel Sports Club got a boost on 12th February as the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation held a charity event for their benefit at the storied ski resort’s Ineos Club House.

Prince Albert and Princess Charlene were among the 200 invited guests, along with English billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, CEO of Ineos, as well as several entrepreneurs and sports figures, including Monegasque skier Arnaud Alessandria.

The dinner, which featured a piano recital by 17-year-old Monegasque piano virtuoso Stella Almondo, was organised by the Courchevel Ski Club President Marc Sénéchal.

Christie’s International led the auction with Director Julien Brunie presiding, and several exciting lots such as works of art, wines, culinary experiences, tourist experiences, and sports accessories signed by renowned athletes went under the gavel.

The trip and event, which coincided with the FIS Alpine World Championships, saw Prince Albert and his wife Princess Charlene on good form, with the Princess looking particularly stunning in an embroidered tulle gown by her preferred designer Akris. The Prince smartly and appropriately donned a blue blazer and slacks.

The Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, which marked its 10th year recently, held this gala auction to raise funds to educate and raise awareness of the benefits of sport to young people, and to give those looking to enter the high-performance sporting world a leg up.

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Photo credit: Eric Mathon/Prince’s Palace

Mixed bag for Roca Team in cup competitions

by: Luke Entwistle
19/02/2023

AS Monaco Basketball progressed in the French Basketball Cup but stumbled at the first hurdle in the Leaders Cup in a week of mixed fortunes for the Principality side.

The Roca Team are currently enjoying a break from Euroleague action but were last week on the trail for silverware. France’s two domestic cup competitions got up and running with things starting positively for Sasa Obradovic’s men against Boulogne-Levallois on Wednesday. 

Victor Wembanyama contained 

The new start of French basketball, Victor Wembanyama (13 points) was in town, and fans packed into the Salle Gaston Médecin to watch him on Wednesday. Thanks to the diligent work on the Monaco defence, the Frenchman didn’t inflict his usual level of damage. That coupled with a mammoth collective scoring effort allowed the Roca Team to blow their opponents away, scoring over 20 points in each quarter, piercing the 100-point mark and winning by 31 points (107-76). 

The usual suspects, Mike James (18 points), Elie Okobo (15 points) and Alpha Diallo (10 points) all chipped-in in a surprisingly comfortable win for Les Monégasques. However, in the wake of the victory, Obradovic could already see signs of trouble. 

“Despite the clear victory, I saw too many errors. However, I am happy with how the team reacted after these previous matches. We approach the Leaders Cup like we should. We are the favourites for the competition and we can’t hide that,” said Obradovic. 

An early exit from the Leaders Cup

Attributed the tag of favourites, the Roca Team didn’t live up to expectations against a dogged Bourg-en-Bresse side on Friday. Monaco had fallen victim to the French side just five days earlier in the league (90-88), but lessons were clearly not learnt. 

Obradovic’s side were wasteful in the quarter-final of the competition, which gathers the highest-performing sides in the Betclic Elite, whilst they once again failed to effectively deal with Bourg-en-Bresse’s offence. 

James’ 26 points couldn’t compensate for the lax defensive performance and a lack of accompanying cast as Monaco suffered a surprising and disappointing defeat to a team that could be considered of inferior standing. 

Obradovic was scathing in his criticism post-match: “The best team is advancing to the semi-final, and why were they better? That’s the question. People said that we were too good for the division, but clearly not. This team must fight 100% for everything and we didn’t do that from the first possession. Everyone has to take responsibility, including me first and foremost,” said the Serbian coach. 

An unintended positive consequence of the early exit from the Leaders Cup is that his side have a whole week to prepare for their clash against Barcelona in the Euroleague with the Roca Team hoping to bounce back from a week of mixed domestic fortunes.

 

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Photo by AS Monaco Basket

Prince’s Palace glows orange for Flavien Foundation

by: Elsa Carpenter
18/02/2023
flavien foundation

In homage to the Flavien Foundation and the thousands of children who battle paediatric cancers each year, the Prince’s Palace in Monaco was lit up in orange on the International Childhood Cancer Day of 15th February. 

The Flavien Foundation – or Fondation Flavien – was founded in 2014 by Denis Maccario in memory of his young son, who sadly lost his fight to this terrible disease. The foundation is the Principality’s first association dedicated to raising funds for new treatments and research programmes in the realm of childhood cancers and rare diseases.   

It recently put out a call for donations with the Monaco Scientific Centre, which could be set to revolutionise the treatment of central nervous system tumours in children. The funds the collaboration raise over the next few months will help pay for a clinical study into the use of axitinib in these young and vulnerable patients, as reported by Monaco Life.  

Cancer is the leading cause of death by disease in children. More than 400,000 children under the age of 20 worldwide suffer from cancer each year; 2,500 in France and Monaco.  

To make a donation, please click here. For further information about the two establishments, click here for the Flavien Foundation and here for the Monaco Scientific Centre.  

READ MORE:

CSM set to revolutionise treatment of childhood cancer

  

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Photo credit: Michael Alesi for the Palais Princier de Monaco

Casino de Monte-Carlo awarded Best Casino Operator, Best Casino Restaurant

by: Cassandra Tanti
17/02/2023

Monaco’s landmark Casino de Monte-Carlo has taken out two top awards at the prestigious ICE London 2023: Best Casino Operator and Best Casino Restaurant. 

The Casino de Monte-Carlo came out ahead of some of the biggest gaming operators in the world at ICE London in early February, winning Best Casino Operator at the International Gaming Awards, and Best Casino Restaurant for Le Train Bleu at the European Casino Awards.

The Casino de Monte-Carlo also had its Responsible Gaming certification from the European Casino Association (ECA) renewed, affirming its benchmark status in the sector.

“I am very proud of the prizes received that are a sign of recognition from our peers,” said Pascal Camia, Director of Operations at Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer. “They reward genuine team work over several years to make our casinos places of entertainment for our fun players and occasional visitors and ultra-private rooms for our VIP clients who are looking for the unrivalled expertise of all the games staff.”

Photo source: Monte-Carlo SBM

Unrivalled experiences

The Best Casino Operator prize highlights the ability of the Casino de Monte-Carlo to create constantly renewed tailor-made experiences, which include the Great Art of the Game for “high rollers”, the greatest players on the planet, with prestigious spaces like ultra-private rooms, high prize tournaments, and exclusive experiences at major sporting events, as well as experiences for “Fun Players” in the Salle Europe: experiences enhanced by the My Monte-Carlo loyalty programme, designed to create a unique customer experience in Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer Resort.

Meanwhile, the prize for Best Casino Restaurant by the European Casino Association honours the tradition of gourmet excellence at the legendary Train Bleu, now run by Richard Rubbini. Apart from its travel-inspired décor and French bistro menu, special attention is paid to what the players want, for a tailor-made offering.

“I would like to congratulate the teams at Casino de Monte-Carlo for these two awards that once again promote the excellence of our expertise and enhance the international reputation of our destination,” said Stéphane Valeri, new Vice-President of Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer. “In the same way, the renewal of the Responsible Gaming certification means that our Casinos are even better positioned, upholding the values that are part of our DNA within the Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer Resort.”

 

SEE ALSO:

Welcome to the jungle: First look at the Café de Paris’ new rooftop restaurant, the Amazónico

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Photos source: Monte-Carlo SBM