AS Monaco have confirmed the signing of Wilfried Singo. The Ivory Coast international joins from FC Torino and has put pen to paper on a five-year deal.
Monaco have completed their fourth signing of the summer. Denis Zakaria joined earlier this week, and his signing followed the arrivals of Philipp Köhn and Mohammed Salisu earlier this summer.
Singo will compete with Vanderson at right-wing-back, however, with the Brazilian looking to push on this season, the Cameroonian international could see plenty of gametime filling in at RCB, especially if Adi Hütter continues to deploy a 3-4-3 formation.
An uncertain future for Ruben Aguilar?
Ruben Aguilar’s future at the Principality club may now be called into question, following Singo’s arrival. The Frenchman is backup to Vanderson, but he now looks to have been pushed further down the pecking order. A return to former club Montpellier HSC is on the cards.
It is now up to Singo, who has grown in stature during his time in Serie A, to impose himself with Les Monégasques. “I’m very happy to be at AS Monaco. I am happy to be a part of a new family, and I hope that we’ll go far together,” he said on the club’s media channels.
As Monaco return to the Stade Louis II for the first time this season, Zakaria and Singo could both be in line to make their debuts for the club.
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Building upon the success of the past two editions, the Monaco Smart and Sustainable Marina Rendezvous will return for a third edition in September, bringing together the major players in the industry in the quest for sustainable solutions.
250 attendees from 26 countries are already confirmed to be participating in the event, which will take place at the Yacht Club de Monaco from 24th to 25th September. Entrepreneurs, startups, industrialists, financiers, promoters, marina developers and architects will all be present at the Nexus event, which brings together all of the major players in the industry. The goal, as it has been in the previous two editions, will be to promote the development of more sustainable marinas.
The Yacht Club de Monaco’s General Secretary, Bernard d’Alessandri, will open the event alongside the CEO of Monaco Marina Management and organiser of the initiative, José Marco Caselini, before roundtable discussions, networking events and an evening cocktail dinner take place, giving participants the chance to exchange their conceptualisation of the “marina of the future”.
The second day of the event will entail multiple sessions, looking at a diverse set of topics, ranging from the impact of the new generation of yachts on marina infrastructures to social media’s influence on ports and yacht clubs.
It is hoped that, just like in prior editions, the 2023 Monaco Smart and Sustainable Marina Rendezvous will facilitate wide-reaching discussions on sustainability issues and emerging challenges within the industry.
Make sure you’re never left out of the conversation.
Weather alerts have been activated in the south of France as a heatwave begins to take hold in the Mediterranean. Locally, daytime temperatures will climb above the 30ºC mark, with little relief at night.
Officials from the Alpes-Maritimes, Var, Hautes-Alpes and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence departments in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (PACA) region have all issued yellow heat alerts for the next few days following a report from Météo France of an intense late summer heatwave beginning 17th August.
HEAT DOME
Heatwaves tend to occur in the region between 1st July and 15th August, but this latest event looks set to continue well into the latter part of August.
The reasons, according to meteorologists from Météo France, are a bubble of high pressure forming over France that will still winds and contribute to a sort of “heat dome” as well as a phenomenon called subsidence, which forces air to descend then compress, causing higher heat levels.
Into the weekend, the central regions of France will also experience similar excessive heat conditions to those in the interior of the PACA.
According to Météo France, “These high temperatures promise to be lasting with peaks close to 40°C in the Mediterranean South and in the Rhône Valley from this weekend… Heatwave vigilance will therefore continue to evolve.”
Nights will offer little relief as temperatures are expected to hover between 22ºC and 25ºC.
Meteorologists also warn that the sea won’t escape the consequences of the heatwave either, with water temperatures expected to reach a bath-like 29ºC in the coming days.
POTENTIAL EFFECTS
The timing of the heatwave is particularly concerning, given its lateness in the summer. The added strain put on ecosystems after an already hot summer could cause potential problems and place increased stress on crops that have suffered in the prolonged extreme heat felt thus far in 2023.
People will also feel the brunt of this heatwave. Though most can adjust using common sense and the odd electric cooling device, some more vulnerable people may find this late heat episode exhausting.
This heatwave promises to be the hottest of the summer, with no significant reduction in temperatures until the middle or end of next week.
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The Shanghai Academic Ranking of World Universities for excellence in science and research has published its 2023 list, and 27 French establishments have placed well.
Created in 2003 by China’s Jiaotong University, the Shanghai Ranking considers and examines over 2,500 institutions around the world to identify the “Top 1,000” that focus on research activities in the hard sciences.
27 French establishments have made it onto the 2023 list, with over two thirds of these in the top half.
Université Paris-Saclay performed best, ranking 15th worldwide. It retains its rank as the leading French university and actually rose one place on the 2022 edition. It is also, notably, the top ranked university in continental Europe. Paris Science and Letters came in at 41st, the Sorbonne achieved 46th and Paris Cité was 68th.
University of Poitiers enters the rankings for the first time this year and the University of the Côte d’Azur climbed an incredible 200 places to reach section 301 to 400. The University of Rennes also made huge leaps, jumping 200 spots to find itself in the 401 to 500 rung.
The strong representation of French universities has not gone unnoticed by the country’s Minister of Higher Education, Sylvie Retailleau, who has congratulated them on their efforts and hard work.
According to a government statement, “[The] eight French universities ranked in the Top 200 have benefited from funding under the various future investment programmes (particularly IDEX or ISITE, Labex, Equipex, Excellencies, etc.) for more than 10 years. This funding has contributed to the structural transformation of institutions, to the enrichment of their training offer and to the definition of their scientific signature.”
For a full list of the universities featured on the Shanghai Ranking, please click here.
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Monaco’s Musée d’Anthropologie Préhistorique is always worth a look in, but there are a few family-friendly activities this August that history and astronomy sleuths really shouldn’t miss!
The Musée d’Anthropologie Préhistorique (MAP) or Prehistoric Anthropology Museum in Monaco is offering two calendar-worthy experiences to the public this month.
On 24th August, the museum will host a “Night at the Museum” event, from 9pm to 11pm, where those “passionate about astronomy and newbies alike are invited to look at the sky through a telescope” and learn more about the heavens above.
Information and educational stands will be set up, guided tours available and a talk on the theme of “The Place of Man in the Universe: In Space, Time, Matter and Living Things” will be given by noted astrophysicist Cédric Jacob.
Another special event and exhibit to catch this summer is that commemorating Prince Albert I, who opened the museum in 1902.
“Prince Albert I had more than one string to his bow,” reads the museum’s website, “but did you know that he also played a major role in the research and history of archaeology? The antiquity of man, the first methodical excavations, the exploration of decorated caves… Some examples which show that Albert I was at the heart – and even at the origin – of the greatest archaeological discoveries and revolutions [of his time].”
This exhibition is open daily from 9am to 6pm.
Reservations are requested to ensure the comfort of visitors. For more information, click here.
To see more of the museum, check out our Instagram video below…
Seemingly floating on the water of the Gulf of Saint Tropez is the picturesque “living harbour” of Port Grimaud. Here’s everything you need to know about this friendly Provençal town.
Often called the “Little Venice of Provence”, Port Grimaud might have been inspired by its more famous and historic Italian counterpart, but it has its own character, despite having only been built in the 1960s.
The concept of a seemingly floating village on the water’s edge was dreamt up by French architect François Spoerry, who had an all-encompassing vision for the place, from the different colours of the façades of the buildings to the names of the streets and the details and frescoes that await visitors around each corner.
A history
Spoerry, originally from the Alsace region of France, bought this stretch of marshland in 1964 and immediately set about the lengthy process of getting building permission and winning over those who didn’t support the project.
The best ways to get around Port Grimaud are on foot or by boat. Photo by Monaco Life
The first steps towards land reclamation and eventual construction were laid in 1966, but works still continued until the turn of the millennium, several years after the death of the town’s “creator”.
In Port Grimaud’s design, Spoerry plumped for a “soft style of architecture” with curving canals, buildings resembling those in other French Riviera fishing towns along the coast and open public spaces to facilitate gatherings and events. It was a well-chosen approach that has seen the town evolve into a community of around 2,4000 homes.
One million visitors a year
Roughly 300 people live here year-round, but that number swells to an estimated 18,000 in the height of summer. Port Grimaud is believed to attract one million tourists each year.
There are 2,000 moorings available for boats, almost all of them just outside the front door of the owners’ properties. The town is also home to 12 islands, which are connected up by 14 bridges. There’s a church, several lovely fountains, a Tour des Célibataires or Singles’ Towers that used to house the seasonal workers of the town, and many restaurants offering varying takes on local and Mediterranean cuisine.
The pretty streets and canals attract as many as one million visitors a year. Photo by Monaco Life
Cars and other road vehicles are near banned in Port Grimaud – only a select few residents are allowed to use them – so the best ways to get about are on foot and, of course, by boat. There are lots of solar-powered and electric water taxis available, so hail one down or book a longer trip in advance with one of the many local companies in and around the town.
There is less “to do” in Port Grimaud than in its neighbours as it’s lacking the “history” of a destination such as Saint Tropez, Gassin, La Garde-Freinet or even its parent town of Grimaud, but it should still be high on your list of future day trips, even if just to wander along its pretty canals and enjoy the tranquility of this purpose-made place.
Make sure you’re never left out of the conversation.
