Antoine de Massy, who has died at 29, grew up in the shadow of one of Monaco’s great tennis families and once set his sights on the Olympic Games. In the end, though, he made his own way as an entrepreneur in the Principality’s small but growing technology sector.
The Prince’s Palace announced his death on Monday 26th October, a day after his body was found in a park below Boulevard du Larvotto. Its tribute focused on the sport that had shaped his early life. “Passionate about tennis, he was part of a family history closely linked to the sport in the Principality,” the Palace said, adding that Their Highnesses “share in the grief of his family and loved ones and extend their sincere condolences at this painful time.”
A Grimaldi by descent
Antoine Alexandre Denis de Massy was born on 15th January 1997, the son of Christian de Massy and Cécile Gelabale, who founded the children’s charity Ladies Lunch Monte-Carlo in 2005.
Through his father he descended directly from the Grimaldis. His grandmother, Princess Antoinette, was the elder sister of Prince Rainier III, which made Christian de Massy a first cousin of Prince Albert II and Antoine the Sovereign’s first cousin once removed. He had no official role in the Princely Family and kept a low public profile.
Raised on the court
Tennis came to him through both blood and example. His grandfather, Alexandre-Athenase Noghès, a Monégasque lawyer who married Princess Antoinette, was an international tennis champion. His aunt, Elizabeth-Ann de Massy, ran the Monte-Carlo Country Club and the Monégasque Tennis Federation for years until her death in 2020. That role has since passed to her daughter, Mélanie-Antoinette de Massy, who also heads the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.
Antoine was given his first racket by his father at the age of three. Before he reached his teens, he had left Monaco for Miami to train seriously, combining long days on court with private lessons.
He described that life to L’Uomo Vogue in 2012, at the age of 15. Each morning started with a run on the beach at eight, then practice, then schoolwork. He named Novak Djokovic as the player he most admired, and he spoke of wanting to wear Monaco’s colours at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. His answer to the magazine’s question about his greatest ambition was: “To become number one in the world,” he said. “Even in the top 20 wouldn’t be bad!”
He never reached the Olympics or the professional tour. But for a teenager, the routine he described shows real discipline and a deep commitment to the game.
From Miami to Monaco’s tech scene
Antoine stayed in Florida after his junior tennis years and went on to Florida International University, where he studied between 2016 and 2019. His interests included international relations and diplomacy.
Back in Monaco, he moved into business. In December 2021 he co-founded Instant App, a company set up to design, build and run software, mobile applications, websites and digital platforms. The Journal de Monaco named him and Kenneth Gadeau as its first managers. When Gadeau stepped down in 2024, Antoine stayed on to run the business with a new partner, Velizar Radovic.
He also became a visible part of the Principality’s efforts to build a digital economy. At the Digital Innovation Summit Monaco in November 2023, he spoke about practical uses for blockchain and cryptocurrency.
Questions over his death
The circumstances of his death are still unknown. According to Prosecutor General Stéphane Thibault, Antoine’s family raised the alarm on Sunday 25th October, and police found his body early that evening.
A man who investigators established had approached Antoine on Boulevard du Larvotto was arrested on Monday morning. His custody was extended by 24 hours that evening while interviews and technical investigations continued. The prosecutor described him as, at this stage, a suspect who had witnessed events whose legal nature had yet to be established, and said that all possibilities remained under consideration, including an accident.
As the investigation continues, the Princely Family, and with it the wider Monégasque community, is left to try to understand how a life so full of promise could end so early.
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