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Day: 26 June 2023

Home favourite Clément Mignon wins Nice Ironman

by: Luke Entwistle
26/06/2023
Clément Mignon winning the Nice Ironman

Clément Mignon became only the second Frenchman, and the first since the inaugural edition in 2005, to win the gruelling Nice Ironman on Sunday.

A 3.8km swim off the Niçois shore, a 180km ride up to the town of Castellane and back, and a 42km run… Factoring in the intense heat of a perfect summer’s day on the Côte d’Azur, Sunday’s race was a gruelling challenge for competitors so it can come as no surprise that the course record, set by Belgian Frederik Van Lierde (8h08’59”) back in 2013, wasn’t broken.

The winner of this 18th edition was Mignon, who has lived in Nice for almost three years, with a time of eight hours, 17 minutes and 40 seconds. He is the first Frenchman to win the race since Hervé Faure 18 years ago.

Competitors cycling along the Promenade des Anglais by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life.

2014 winner Bart Aernouts (8h24’12”) of Belgium was the next to reach the finish line on the Promenade des Anglais, with German Jonas Hoffmann (8h27’25”) rounding off the podium.

In the half Ironman, it was an all-French podium. Paul Loiseaux (4h22’11”) of Team Nissa stood upon the top step with Clément Simon and David Benistant finishing second and third respectively.

The well-attended event also allowed amateurs to compete so countless family members and friends lined the Promenade des Anglais alongside fans and onlookers in support of what is a tough and, for many, emotional challenge.

Clément Mignon celebrating with his family by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life.

The World Championship comes to the Côte in September

Sunday’s event was a precursor to a larger event as the Ironman World Championship comes to Nice on 10th September. The Men’s event will take place in the Riviera city, whilst the Women’s edition will take place in Kona, Hawaii in October.

Through his victory in the Ironman-stamped event, Mignon will now compete in the prestigious championship in his home city.

 

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Photo by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life

EU to invest billions in “green” transport upgrades 

by: Stephanie Horsman
26/06/2023

Almost 100 eco-friendly transport projects have been earmarked for funding across Europe, including rail, inland waterway and maritime routes.  

Over 350 proposals were submitted to the European Commission (EC) in 2022 in response to a call for the bloc’s nations to come up with ways to improve transport networks. 

Now, the EC has announced that 107 of these projects will become realities with funding support via grants from a pool of €6.2 billion allotted by the EU. 

MONEY FOR GREEN GOALS 

More than 80% of the pay outs will support eco-friendly projects, notably along the trans-European transport network, the TEN-T.  

The TEN-T is the bloc’s method for developing coherent, efficient, multimodal and high-quality transport infrastructure across the EU. It is made up of railways, inland waterways, short sea shipping routes and roads linking urban nodes, maritime and inland ports, airports and terminals. 

“Today, we are allocating €6.2 billion to projects across Europe that will take us closer to completing the TEN-T, the backbone of the EU’s economy,” said Adina Vălean, Commissioner for Transport. 

BIG PLANS 

Some of the bigger projects to be undertaken include an upgrade to infrastructure on the Seine-Scheldt waterway that runs between France and Belgium, as well as modernisation of inland ports on the Danube and Rhine basins.  

EU rail transportation will see increased interoperability and safety with the installation of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) on trains in France, Germany, Denmark, Austria, Czechia and Slovakia. Other rail projects include cross-border rail connections between Italy and Austria via the Brenner Base tunnel, and a Rail Baltica plan connecting Poland and the Baltics to the rest of Europe.  

Additionally, maritime ports in Ireland, Greece, Spain, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Poland will receive funding to develop on-shore power supplies that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from moored vessels. 

Finally, air transport will also get a look in, with several member states getting support for air traffic management projects aimed at increasing efficiency as well as creating a single “European sky”.  

 

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Photo source: Ian Taylor on Unsplash

Psychiatric centre for children to open in Beausoleil this September 

by: Stephanie Horsman
26/06/2023

Monaco and France have announced the upcoming opening of a new psychiatric centre in Beausoleil that will welcome children and adolescents, including those who suffer with disorders requiring more full-time care.  

As many of one in five teenagers suffer from mental health issues, according to the UK’s Mental Health Foundation, and it is believed that 50% of long-term mental health problems develop by the age of 14.  

Given these numbers and the seriousness of the subject, Monaco and France have teamed up to build a new paediatric psychiatric centre in Beausoleil that will begin welcoming outpatients this autumn. 

A JOINT EFFORT 

The announcement by Monaco’s Minister of State Pierre Dartout and François Braun, the French Minister for Health and Prevention, was made on 23rd June in the Principality and followed the official signing of an administrative arrangement to formalise the agreement.  

This centre has been five years in the making, with the original idea floated in October 2018 by a partnership involving the Monegasque Department of Social Affairs and Health, the PACA Regional Health Agency and the Lenval Foundation. 

Since then, a 650m2 property in Beausoleil has been secured and the future centre co-financed by the involved parties.  

WHAT IT WILL OFFER? 

The centre will offer outpatient services for children up to the age of 18 as well as help for young people who have psychological conditions that prevent them from participating in the usual everyday activities of their peers, such as attending school full-time.  

For these specific cases, accommodation for up to 35 patients will be offered, with 17 spaces reserved for children living in or going to school in the Principality, and the remainder going to those from the eastern Alpes-Maritimes.  

 

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Photo credit: Manuel Vitali / Monaco Communications Department