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Day: 8 January 2024

Basketball | Roca Team confirms the temporary suspension of Élie Okobo

by: Elsa Carpenter
08/01/2024

AS Monaco Basket has confirmed that one of its leading talents, the 26-year-old shooting guard Élie Okobo, has been temporarily suspended from the team.

According to representatives for the league-topping Roca Team, Bordeaux native Okobo, who is a key player for the Monaco side, has been temporarily suspended following a “violation of the Club’s internal rules”. 

“As a result, Élie Okobo is currently away from all activities linking him to the AS Monaco Basket entity,” reads the communiqué, which was released by AS Monaco Basket on Saturday 6th January.

No reason or further details were provided in the press release, however, the French website bebasket.fr has suggested that an altercation with another AS Monaco Basket player following the game against Olympiacos Piraeus on Thursday 4th January may be the cause. 

That away game in the Greek city of Piraeus saw the Roca Team lose by just two points: 75-73. The defeat puts AS Monaco Basket eighth in the EuroLeague standings.  

The news is better in the domestic French league, the Betclic Elite, which is currently being led by the Monegasque side thanks to the team’s impressive 94.1% success rate. Of the 17 matches played this season, the Roca Team has lost just one.  

AS Monaco Basket next face Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in the EuroLeague on Tuesday 9th January. It will be played at home in the Salle Gaston Médecin.  

Read related: 

Basketball: Roca Team gears up for a busy January after rollercoaster results on court

 

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Photo credit: AS Monaco Basket

 

Opéra de Monte-Carlo to revive Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem

by: Stephanie Horsman
08/01/2024

After Rossini’s Stabat Mater and Verdi’s Requiem, it is the turn of Johannes Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem to take centre stage at a special one-night-only choral concert orchestrated by the Opéra de Monte-Carlo.  

On 29th January, a choral concert “designed to enhance the repertoire of the Opéra’s choir and reveal to the public the full scope of its abilities” will take place at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo. The highlight of the night is to be a performance of Johannes Brahms’ 1869 breakthrough masterpiece, Ein Deutsches Requiem. 

Created after experiencing two great losses, that of his mother and of his mentor, Robert Schumann, Brahms’ touching tribute was the composer’s first venture into the symphonic realm and is recognised today as his “passport to glory”.  

The piece is considered a blend of Baroque funeral cantata and Romantic oratorio, the genre that the composer, himself a virtuoso pianist, is most often associated with.  

See more: Interview: Cecilia Bartoli on taking the Opéra de Monte-Carlo to new heights

For the one-off rendition in Monaco, the Musiciens du Prince will join the Chœur de l’Opéra de Monte-Carlo, soprano Regula Mühlemann and baritone Simon Keenlyside. Gianluca Capuano will conduct alongside choirmaster Stefano Visconti. 

The show will begin at 8pm and tickets are already selling fast. To reserve your seat or for more information about the concert, click here. 

Read related:

Opéra de Monte-Carlo’s Cecilia Bartoli to star as Cleopatra in ‘Giulio Cesare in Egitto’

 

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Photo credit: Marco Borrelli / Opéra de Monte-Carlo

Concerns over €24 million TV Monaco budget raised by National Council

by: Stephanie Horsman
08/01/2024

Just four months after its launch, concerns are being raised about the millions in State funding being used to back Monaco’s first public television station, TV Monaco.

The price tag for Monaco’s new public television channel came up for discussion in the National Council’s budget talks last month. At €24 million, a €9 million increase on the initial forecast, it was enough for elected officials to ask what exactly the money is to be used for.

The ambitious new station, which was launched on 1st September 2023 by Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene, broadcasts a range of programming in the French language, including news, talk shows, and documentaries designed to promote the Principality and Monaco’s culture. It is affiliated with France’s TV5Monde, which means its content is available in around 200 countries.

QUESTIONS LOOM

TV Monaco, which received a purpose-built studio in Fontvieille, is meant to be funded partly by the state, and partly through sales and advertising. Initially, this state funding was set at €15 million, but has inched up in the last few months, leading Franck Julien, Chair of the Finance and National Economy Committee, to say to Council, “The sum is greater than 1% of State expenditure, the budget is greater than four times that of the National Council. It is far from being negligible,” according to a report by Monaco Matin.

He went on to question other aspects of the large budget, pointing out that “There is a line item of €1.147 million for miscellaneous and unforeseen elements. Why already plan for the unforeseen when we are only at the beginning? We also have a line item of €8.5 million as far as programme purchases are concerned. That still seems quite enormous to me.”

On this, Minister of State Pierre Dartout, reportedly responded, “It is a channel which is starting (…) which will gradually grow, develop its audience and generate advertising revenue. This will compensate for the expenses.”

OTHER CRITICISMS

Other concerns include the station not being focused enough on Monaco, either in content or in management.

The channel’s general director, Nathalie Biancolli, told Monaco Matin, “Basically, TV Monaco is four months old and already has more than 120 talk shows to its credit, nearly 190 hours of new programs produced in Monaco, almost half of which are re-broadcast worldwide every day. While there is no question of resting on our laurels, I think that we have already contributed significantly to the Principality’s international influence. This is one of the foundations of TV Monaco and an obligation in its specifications, which it is keen to respect. At this stage, we have already launched nearly 500 hours of in-house productions which will be broadcast in the coming months.”

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Main photo source: Conseil National de Monaco

 

 

Unleash your inner artist at the Pavillon Bosio’s new colour and still life courses

by: Stephanie Horsman
08/01/2024

Over the coming months, Monaco’s École Supérieure d’Arts Plastiques-Pavillon Bosio will be running two mini courses – one on the theme of colour and the other focusing on still life proficiency – that will be taught by specialists from the respective fields.  

Artist Mona Barbagli will be leading the ‘Universe of Colours’ course, which will involve a series of workshops on 31st January and 7th, 14th and 21st February. Over the four sessions, students will get to know a mix of mediums, from collage to fabric painting, while elaborating on a theme chosen during the first class.  

Then comes the enduring art of still life drawing, which will be taught by artist and art teacher Sandrine Flury on 13th, 20th and 27th March and 3rd April.  

Flury will provide her protégés with the building blocks of still life, from the basic sketch to adding depth to the drawing to the final stages, where colour brings it to life.  

For those registered for ESAP public workshops, the cost for each course is €120. For those not registered, the cost is €160. A list of the required tools and materials will be provided upon registration.

To sign up or for more information, click here. 

 

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Photo source: Mona Barbagli, Instagram

France expands bicycle subsidy scheme to second-hand bikes

by: Niki Borisova
08/01/2024
bonus vélo

Since the start of the year, purchases of used and second-hand bicycles have been eligible for part-funding under France’s bonus vélo scheme. 

Prior to 1st January 2024, the bicycle subsidy initiative was exclusive to new models, but now it has been expanded to offer money back on the purchase of a bicycle new or used, including electric bikes, provided that they are bought from a professional or registered merchant.  

The scheme continues to be means-tested, with the threshold for aid having been raised in 2023. While those with lower incomes can benefit from higher subsidies, up to €2,000 in some cases, all residents are entitled to some form of assistance.  

A range of personal transportation falls under the scheme, from traditional pedal-powered bicycles to e-bikes, folding bikes and those adapted for people with disabilities.  

Applications for money back under the bonus vélo must be submitted within six months of the bike’s purchase and can be processed online.   

The full and updated details on the scheme can be found here. 

 

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Photo source: Unsplash

Football | Penalty shootout success sees AS Monaco through to Coupe de France Round of 32

by: Elsa Carpenter
08/01/2024

After more than two weeks off the pitch over the Christmas holidays, AS Monaco played their first game of 2024 against Racing Club de Lens at the Stade Bollaert on 7th January. 

It was a tricky match that had initially looked to be in the bag for the Monaco side, as they quickly edged two goals up. The first was a stunner from captain Wissam Ben Yedder, who found the back of the net after just 33 seconds. 20 minutes later came the second goal, this time from Maghnes Akliouche. 

Lens reduced the lead to 2-1 just before half-time, and returned from the changing rooms charged up with a series of attempts that eventually brought the northern French team success in the 62nd minute. The game remained 2-2 until the whistle blew.  

Ultimately, and with a place in the Round of 32 of the Coupe de France on the line, the game came down to penalties.  

PENALTY SHOOTOUT

After some very tense moments, the 700 Rouge et Blanc supporters who had made the trip to the Pas-de-Calais stadium could rejoice when Soungoutou Magassa scored with a blast into the top corner that sailed by Lens’ Brice Samba. He was the ninth AS Monaco player to take a penalty in what was a superb showing from both sides – and goalkeepers.  

Post-match, AS Monaco manager Adi Hütter told reporters, “Opposite us, there was a great team, very combative, and we knew that we were dealing with a team worthy of the Champions League… I have also never seen a penalty shootout like this, with a lot of misses, but also a lot of saves. I would like to congratulate Radoslaw Majecki, but also Brice Samba, they both had a good match. We will now return to Monaco, with good energy.” 

The win, which is AS Monaco’s fifth consecutive victory against Lens, puts the team through to the Round of 32 of the Coupe de France. It is also the 11th consecutive win of the team’s first game of the year since 2013! 

AS Monaco next face Stade de Reims on 13th January at home in the Stade Louis II.  

 

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Photo credit: AS Monaco Football