The English Osteopath was 28 when she broke her back while playing tennis, an accident that resulted in temporary paralysis in both legs for six months. It was thanks to an osteopath that she began to walk again and found herself on a life-changing road to recovery.
“Lying in bed thinking I’d never walk, work, or love again, I had to make a decision to thrive. I turned off my emotions and got on with it,” Rachael describes.
She quit her job with the Daily Mail Group, where she was the youngest commercial publisher at the time, and spent the next five years training at the British School of Osteopathy.
Speaking French since the age of 7 and having studied at the Institut de Français in Villefranche, Rachael moved to Antibes in 2001 and set up her first English Osteopath clinic at 4 rue Vauban. She has since become the only clinic in Antibes to be approved by the Norwegian Government to issue Seafarer Medical certificates required by all yacht crew.
With a large portion of clients driving from Monaco, the ever-energetic brunette opened a second clinic in 2010 at 11 bis avenue Generale de Gaulle in bordering Beausoleil. She then initiated the Frozen Shoulder and Chronic Fatigue clinics and set up an association for those with limited income to have access to free osteo healthcare for their children and babies (all her osteopaths are trained in paediatric osteopathy).
With a bilingual team of 16 between the two locations, Rachael was heavy-hearted having to shut down the two locations during the first Covid confinement that began in March. “It was tough on my business and tough on the patients having their treatment programmes disrupted. I spent a lot of time on Zoom walking patients through their pain, which worked surprisingly well, and some were even cracking their own backs! Luckily the pharmacists were open and I could arrange with our clinic doctor to get them the right medication.”
In round two of confinement in France, which started October 30, the clinics are allowed to remain open. Thy are busier now than ever and are seeing a type of pain that the therapists describe as a physical manifestation of constant low-grade stress and anxiety, the result of poor at home office work stations or the result of looking at screens more than usual, as all other healthy physical activities have been curtailed.
In Monaco, with people travelling less, patient frequency has increased while in Antibes, where the yachting industry is at a standstill, there has been a slight drop in appointments.
Still, across the board, the intuitive Rachael has noticed a change in recent weeks. “I see a rise in stress. You know, the expat community is already isolated and I think the reality has just sunk in that people can’t go home for Christmas to see their families. Our ability to cope with pain is different when we are sympathetically aroused, like we are now. This means we are gearing up to face an attacker, and Covid is one that we can’t see, so it’s fight-or-flight.”
In Antibes, where cafés and restaurants are closed, Rachael has opened the Waiting Room Café at the clinic. “People need to connect so while a patient is waiting, there’s a Nespresso machine, cookies and even beer, and a table for one – we are hoping for TripAdvisor reviews! – and if someone needs to talk, we’ll sit and have a chat and a coffee.”
In addition to running to the two English Osteopath clinics and doing call outs (even on weekends), Rachael is the lead medic for Supporting Wounded Veterans, a U.K. charity that supports 26 veterans a year through Skiing with Heroes – a “skibilitation” week – and also providing each veteran with a mentor and treatment at the only Wounded Veterans’ Pain Management Programme in Britain. “This program gives veterans confidence and a chance to start new lives,” she says, something she knows first hand.
Over the last five years, she has raised €100,000 for Supporting Wounded Veterans through a 5-day “Mountains to Monaco” bike ride and two quiz nights in Monaco, one held at Stars’n’Bars where Gilly Norton, founder of the founder charity, told me, “Some 87% of those who participate in our Pain Clinic and/or Skiing with Heroes programme return to work or training.”
Rachael says that the charity is currently fundraising “to take part in very exciting research” using psychedelic drugs, such as MDMA, as part of a therapeutic approach to treat PTSD. “If this trial continues to produce results, it will be a game-changing breakthrough in helping those suffering with this terrible mental health condition and who haven’t responded to other Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapies currently available.”
Article first published July 2024. Photos: Nancy Heslin
Valerie Closier may have grown up in Lésigny, some 50 kilometres southeast of Paris in the Seine-et-Marne department, yet she could not be more deeply rooted in Monaco’s car culture.
Valerie Closier with Prince Albert February 6, 2024. Photo: Facebook Automobile Club de Monaco
A model child in school who was “a bit of a tomboy”, Valerie played on the tennis team and was coached by the first trainer of Guy Forget (he helped France win the Davis Cup in both 1991 and 1996). Her dark hair and eyes earned her the nickname Gabriella as she resembled Gabriella Sabatini, the former world No. 3 who played from the mid-80s to mid-90s.
Yet it was her love of dance – classical, modern jazz and tap – that earned Valerie her first win at a national level with her dance class in 1989.
It was thirteen years before she won another French national title, but this time it would be as a rally co-driver.
“I first became interested in rallies with my dad, Michel. He drove an Alpine A110 Berlinette co-piloted by a childhood friend. I would take photos and videos because I was passionate about video editing at the time,” recalls Valerie, Director of the Prince’s Car Collection since December 2019.
One day, as she explains, a friend of her father, none other than Jean Charles Rédélé – son of Jean, the creator of the Alpine automotive brand – was racing in the French Véhicule Historique de Compétition (VHC) when he put a helmet on young Valerie’s head and snapped a picture. “A few weeks later, my dad received the photo in the mail with a note on the back scribbled, ‘She’s ready.’ My dad asked if I wanted to try a rally and off I went to co-drive with him in the Berlinette. We did this for about 10 years.”
Valerie’s first rally memory is the Grand Caunet, a special stage of the Sainte Baume Rallycircuit in Marseille, where, unfortunately, at the arrival check point the head gasket prevented the daughter-dad duo from continuing.
“I was left hungry. Motor racing and speed provide adrenaline and such exceptional and exhilarating emotions. That’s when I finally understood the expression voir la route par les portières [seeing the road through the doors].”
The year after the Rallycircuit, in 2002, Valerie and her dad took part in the VHC rally championship and she became the French national VHC co-driver champion. “When the car works well, and the pace notes for speed and distance fall into place and the driver is confident, it is though the car is flying, and it is an extraordinary feeling. A total osmosis between the driver, the co-driver and the car.
“And teaming up with my dad in the car and my mom at the refuelling station was great. It was a fabulous few weeks of racing but returning to reality on Sunday evening was much less exciting.”
The accomplished rally competitor was also co-driver for Jean-Claude Andruet in a Porsche 3l in the 2010 VHC rally cup final in La Rochelle. The pair made all the scratches and won the rally ahead of Dominique Depons and Jean Ragnotti. They teamed up again at the 2023 Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique in an Alpine A110 Group 4 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Andruet’s 1973 victory in Monte-Carlo with Alpine.
This year, Valerie will be participating in a special capacity for ACM’s 2024 Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique, which officially kicks off February 1. Unlike last week’s 2024 Rallye Monte-Carlo, the historic version features cars driven in the Monte Carlo Rally between 1911 and 1983.
“The historic rally is for the fastest but, above all, it’s about a passion for cars, conviviality, helping each other, good humour and meeting like-minded people. I like the whole atmosphere.”
For Valerie, this passion for automobiles “has contributed to Monaco’s international prestige” as proven by the legendary Rallye Monte-Carlo created in 1911 by Prince Albert I. “At the time, it was a way to attract the European jet-set to Monaco. This was followed by the Monaco Grand Prix in 1929 inaugurated by Prince Louis II.”
She adds, “At the beginning of the 1970s, the rally took place according to a schedule that would endure nearly 25 years: first a course of concentration where crews would drive day and night to arrive towards the city of Monaco before then leaving for a second course, which was timed and used by all drivers in the regions of Isère, Drôme and Alpes-Maritimes.
“Nowadays, the historic rally starts in cities like Reims, Bad Homburg, Milan or Glasgow, and competitors converge towards Monaco and then head onto mountain roads, often snow-covered, where they have to know how to control the climb to stay on the road to get back to the Principality on the finishing podium.”
Although the rally runs until February 7, Valerie will co-pilot a special car on February 6 at 8 pm. “HSH Prince Albert II will have the honour of taking the wheel of a Deutsch-Bonnet Frua Coupe during the Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique . And I will have the privilege of being beside the Prince to take a tour of the Principality. We will then return to the closed rally car park so that the Sovereign can give the start to official competitors of the 2024 historic’s last stage: the night of Turini.”
This exceptional event is part of the commemorations for Prince Rainier III’s centenary of his birth. In 1953, and under his real name “Louis Carladès,” Prince Rainier and his mechanic Mr. Benit entered the Tour de France automobile at the wheel of a Deutsch-Bonnet Frua Coupe. A few years ago, the Car Collection acquired an old Deutsch-Bonnet to restore for the occasion.
Valerie Closier with Prince Albert February 6, 2024. Photo: Facebook Automobile Club de Monaco
“Prince Rainier built up a large personal collection of vintage cars, depending on opportunities and his favourites,” informs Valerie. “He collected and restored some 100 vehicles, a large sample of models built by the most famous European and American carmakers. He said, and I quote, ‘It’s not a car museum but a personal collection of cars of all ages and from all countries. Popular or prestigious, they marked their era and I liked them.’”
In July 2022, the Prince’s Car Collection moved from Fontvieille to its new home at 54 route de la Piscine along Port Hercules. The space offers “an unforgettable historical journey” of the princely family through private and unpublished photos and videos. The relocation gave “a new lease of life and a more modern scenography” and Valerie’s goal is to bring “this magnificent place to life and make it shine not only in Monaco but also in France and abroad.” Last year visitors numbers increased by more than 80% compared to 2022.
The first Monegasque Formula One driver for Ferrari, Charles Leclerc, donated his single-seater in which he won Spa and Monza in 2019 to the Collection. It is in pole position on the mezzanine’s F1 zone. Valerie shares, “It’s the ‘WOW! factor for visitors when they first enter and are surprised to see Formula One single-seaters on the wall. People are fascinated by the incredible size of these F1 cars when they see them up close.”
In 2023, the Car Collection held several exhibitions, from cars (the 75th anniversary of Porsche and a mini Bugatti expo) to art (by former rugby player Jean-Pierre Rives), and served as a runway for Monte Carlo Fashion Week in May.
The cars are also lent out for charity rallies (Child CARE Monacovintage rally), or on display at concours d’elegance competitions and car shows, like Top Marques Monaco or Rétromobile in Paris. Valerie also develops the Collection’s private capacity, with exclusive dinners and cocktail receptions, such as the launch of The Monegasque magazine last December.
Valerie, who can be found sipping un café or deux at the Café de Paris in the winter months (or at Larvotto’s La Note Bleue when warmer), is known by everyone for her positive, dynamic and enthusiastic personality. “When I have an idea, a desire, a proposal, I go for it, with audacity and determination. And often it pays off.”
She draws her motto “nothing attempted, nothing gained” from her family. Her parents lived in Monaco (“My mom worked at Radio Monte-Carlo as an assistant to Bernard Spindler and my dad was a diver in Cousteau’s team. He was even the diver on duty during the F1 Grand Prix in 1959 at the tobacconist”) and her aunt owned the Monte-Carlo Bar at Place d’Armes.
“Without passion, life has no flavour,” she insists. “And it is thanks to this drive for motorsport that I meet incredible people. These are genuine emotions and precious moments of sharing and joy.”
The Aquarius talks about how in recent years there have been more and more initiatives to support women and girls to get a foot in motorsport. “It’s not easy to move the lines because it’s a very male-dominated field. I am delighted that women like Susie Wolff with the F1 Academy and Deborah Mayer at the head of Iron Dames are raising their voices to open new paths for women in this field.”
Then there is the More Than Equal initiative co-founded by 13-time F1 winner David Coulthard and entrepreneur Karel Komarek to finance an ambitious program aimed at giving women drivers the means to access Formula One. “This is real progress which, I hope, will gradually succeed in changing the somewhat archaic mentalities of motorsport.
“I’d like to think we are on the right track but there are still a few turns and speed bumps to cross.”
Carina Bruwer admits she has always been a dreamer and will break the mould whenever she has the chance. In her world, nothing is impossible. “Coming from a musical family, I wasn’t heavily involved in sports growing up because perfecting a musical instrument requires a huge commitment and investment, and I sacrificed a lot for it.”
And yet Carina’s dream was to swim across the bay she often visited as a kid in her native South Africa. It was considered impossible – 35 km of rough, shark infested waters. It wasn’t until she finished school that she began swimming seriously and decided to pursue this “crazy” childhood vision. “I was self-trained and spent almost five years building up my mileage and courage to attempt the crossing. My first attempt nearly ended in disaster due to hypothermia, but I eventually succeeded.”
At 44, Carina has been swimming almost every day for nearly 25 years, and estimates she’s covered close to 40,000 km of open water in her lifetime. “I continue to race competitively and take on extreme solo challenges to support various charities.”
As she explains it, “I love the meditative nature of distance swimming; it feels like I enter a different mental wavelength a few kilometres into a long swim. There’s an incredible sense of freedom – almost like flying.” It doesn’t hurt that she is gifted with a naturally efficient swim stroke, which is ideal for endurance distances, like the 21km “Triple Country” France–Monaco–Italy swim and crossing the English Channel.
Carina trained by swimming between 6 to 8 km daily. “It’s not natural to swim for hours on end. The body instinctively wants to get out of the water after a relatively short time, especially when it’s cold. You must be over-prepared to have enough strength to face the mental challenges that are an intrinsic part of endurance swimming. It requires incredible dedication, similar to mastering a musical instrument.”
On August 1, 2005 she swam from England to France in 15°C water temps in a time of 12h03. As the Capetonian describes, there are various mental techniques to help endure the discomfort: detaching from it, negotiating with the voice of fear that tells you to stop and turn back, reframing the challenge into smaller, more manageable chunks, and reminding yourself that you can always do “just one more thing” – one more stroke, another 100 meters, another feed, another kilometre. “If you repeat that process a few times, you might just find yourself on the other side.”
Nutrition also plays a part in endurance swimming. Staying hydrated and consuming the right balance of carbohydrates, proteins, and electrolytes is critical to prevent fatigue and maintain strength. “Your support team is your eyes and ears because, as a swimmer, you’re very isolated. When the going gets tough – which it inevitably does – your team often keeps you motivated and focused.”
For Carina, it’s often inspiration pushes her beyond her boundaries. “When you’re swimming for a purpose greater than yourself, a cause, it gives you that extra strength to keep going, even when every part of you wants to quit.”
When she started a family, the new mom stuck to swimming in the safety of a pool. “I felt it was selfish to dedicate so much time and take risks in such an extreme sport when I had a young child at home.” But the pull of the ocean was strong, and Carina started missing her time in the water. “I became more aware of how fortunate I was to have my gifts, skills, and a healthy family while recognizing the immense need and suffering around us.
“I decided to return to open water swimming, but only if I could use my passion and abilities to make a positive impact – even if it meant changing just one person’s life. That’s when I started Swim For Hope in 2012, shortly after my second daughter was born. The initiative began in support of a child cancer foundation, and since then, I’ve completed numerous swims for various charities, including Muzukidz, which provides intensive violin tuition to disadvantaged children, and Tribuo, which supported musicians and performers who lost their income during the Covid pandemic.”
The mom of three is now planning her most ambitious Swim For Hope to date. The details are still under wraps, but the swim is scheduled for next August or September and “will challenge me physically and mentally in ways I’ve never experienced before.” The next step is securing sponsorship, but Carina is excited about the far-reaching impact the challenge could have.
Endurance swimmer Carina Bruwer and Swimrun Monaco founder Matteo Testa with Princess Charlene at Water Safety Day in Monaco in 2023. Photo: Matteo Testa.
Carina met fellow South African Princess Charlene in 2023 at a Water Safety Day in Monaco organised by her Foundation. It was swim instructor Matteo Testa, founder of Swimrun Monaco and ActivExplorer, who made the introduction. Matteo was Carina’s boat support for her 2018 Italy to Monaco swim. “I am very impressed by Princess Charlene’s efforts and would love to become more involved. Swimming promotes physical health, builds confidence, and teaches children how to stay safe in and around water, which is crucial, especially in areas with easy access to bodies of water.”
With Matteo, Carina is co-hosting a “Beyond Boundaries: Empowering Open Water Swim Retreat” from September 13-16 in Noli, Italy, a 75-minute drive from Monaco.
The 4-day retreat is for anyone who want to experience the magic of open water swimming. “Participants can expect a lot of swimming – whether it’s 500m or 10km – and an opportunity to learn new skills, all while challenging themselves to go beyond their self-imposed limitations.”
In addition to open water swims and basic stroke analysis, the retreat will include inspirational workshops and one-on-one sessions focused on breaking down life barriers, plus gourmet meals, nature hikes, and down time in a beautiful setting. (See here for more info and rates, which include companion and a 1-day options.)
Carina, who is also an acclaimed musician, says swimming in the ocean is empowering and teaches us many valuable lessons. “It forces us to confront our fears and develop resilience. It teaches us to be patient and persistent, to trust our instincts, and to respect the natural world around us.
“It reminds us to accept the ebb and flow of life – sometimes we feel like we’re moving backward, sometimes we’re propelled forward, and other times we seem to be simply treading water. But as long as we keep moving, we make progress, and over time, we make a difference.”
Article first published September 3, 2024.Feature image of Carina Brewer by Carel Kuschke.
In 2008, Fenella Holt and her husband Ed, a well-known yacht photographer, moved to Antibes from Mallorca. “Ed’s job meant we needed to be where the boats were,” explains Fenella. “At that time there was an exodus from Mallorca due to increased berthing fees and my kids had just finished school, so it was a good time to make a move. The boats were moving here, so we did too.”
Fenella eventually started working as a sales assistant at Heidi’s English Bookshop in the old town when, three years later, owner Heidi Lee made the decision to close down after 25 years. “I was therefore made redundant,” explains Fenella. “I realised that there was an opportunity to fill the gap left behind, and I’d learnt enough during my time there to risk it. I reckoned that if I could find the right location, I could make a successful business, and that’s what happened!”
She took on the locale of the defunct Catholic bookshop, La Procure, at 13 rue Georges Clemenceau and it could not have been better placed. “Everyone goes up and down this street, no matter where they are headed.”
And so, on Valentine’s Day 2015, Fenella officially opened the new Antibes Books with Merde! author Stephen Clarke on hand for a book signing. At time Fenella commented, “I can’t imagine ever wanting to go back to London.”
Of course, there have been unexpected ups and unexpected downs over the years. “The low point of the decade was definitely Brexit; it was much worse than Covid. Covid was, in a weird way, a joy! To begin with, I had to close, like everyone else. Then, one evening a couple of weeks into lockdown, I read that stationery shops were allowed to open, so the next day, I got my accountant to change my business licence to include papeterie, I bought some pencil sharpeners, sellotape and Tipp-Ex online and in no time we were open again.
“The shop then became a hub for those on their short daily walks, with many popping in for a chat, a quick (illegal) coffee or sometimes a cry. I think we provided a haven for many lonely people during that time. I’m really glad about that. As for Brexit, don’t get me started. My blood pressure couldn’t take it.”
Fenella says she has hosted some wonderful authors for events at Antibes Books. “We laughed ourselves silly with Celia Imrie – twice. Stephen Clark was a hoot, and the late, lovely, (normally grumpy) Henning Mankell gave me the biggest bouquet of roses you ever saw on opening day.”
There have been visits and impromptu signings with Rick Stein (pictured), Rod Stewart, Hugh Grant, Sharon Stone –and Fenella’s favourite regular – Pete Townshend.
And now, most unfortunately, Fenella is suffering from a chronic health disorder and the time has come to sell the beloved shop. “I want Antibes Books to continue to thrive. I won’t divulge stuff about the business itself here, anyone interested can contact me directly. Suffice to say that it’s very healthy, I am earning an excellent living and that I am willing to train a new owner in every aspect of the business, if needed.
“Also we are just about to launch our new home delivery service. We trialled this during Covid and it was a hit, as I expect it will be again. Thanks to this new legislation, we can be truly competitive when compared to the big online stores.”
Fenella assures that the family, which includes Athos (pictured), her tiny Jack Russell puppy who grew and grew into a 28kg Bernese Mountain Dog – “He was meant to fit in my bicycle basket!” – will definitely stay in the country.
“France is our permanent home, but away from the Med and hopefully away from the mosquitos! I love to swim in lakes and rivers, as does Athos with me, so once I have time, we are going to take off in our camper van, tour the country and find our idyll.”
Fenella Holt is happy to speak with potential bookshop owners and can be reached on 04 93 61 96 47 or by email.
The first ten days of motherhood for Johanna Damar Flores were not what she imagined. “While breastfeeding my 10-day-old son, I discovered a huge ball on his neck. I was alone and at home. At first, I was quite anxious. I didn’mut know what it was or who to contact.”
Thanks to Johanna’s network in Monaco, her son was quickly diagnosed and, after a year of reeducation, his neck completely healed. “During this unexpected experience, I realised that when we become parents – and not only for the first time – we all feel isolated and uninformed.”
WATCH VIDEO ABOVE: Anna Campbell and Clémence Perrin give the scoop on Entreparents and their Global Day of Parents huge all-day party at Larvotto.
With her mum friends Emilie Sabatié and Swiss-born Clémence Perrin, Johanna put out an online survey and the answers showed that new parents can struggle to find the information they need from one central source. “We were never meant to raise children alone,” says Emilie, who, like Johanna, was born in France and grew up in Monaco. “It takes a village, and when you don’t have the psychological and physical support of others life is more challenging.”
This was the start of the Entreparents network and their mission “to help at least one family,” says Johanna.
Entreparents cofounders Emilie Sabatié, Johanna Damar Anna Campbell and Clémence Perrin.
Brit Anna Campbell, who has lived in Monaco for 12 years, joined the French-speaking trio and Entreparents became an official Monaco association in May 2021. Their goal? To put parenthood back into the heart of the community. They have almost 2,000 authentic followers on Instagram.
“The whole journey is a new challenge, something you haven’t experienced before and is unique for everyone,” says Clémence. “You realise at each stage that things in your life will change – your body, your moods, thoughts, relationships – but you don’t know to what extent until you’re living it. And the not knowing is stressful, so the care and support of those who do know is invaluable.”
Emilie adds, “We really believe that Monaco is an exceptional environment and offers many great services to parents. With Entreparents, we always want to value the existing services – like the Espaces Parents at the mairie managed by Maryline Soldano and the ateliers of the CHPG Maternity – and connect parents to them.”
The association is not only for parents and future parents in Monaco and the surrounding area, but also for family members, childcare providers, professionals and institutions within the family-child environment. And it’s not just for mothers either. “Our aim to include dads and their role in raising a baby,” shares Johanna. “It’s same for them when it comes to isolation and lack of information, and having the opportunity to meet people at the same life stage.
Anna, a mum of three who has lived in Monaco for twelve years has limited French. “There are added difficulties if you’re an expat, don’t speak French and you’re potentially living in a new place without knowing many people or where to get the information you need, like finding a doctor or baby formula. When you don’t have family nearby you really rely on the community and support of others in your situation or others who can offer guidance, they become your family, your tribe, your village.”
Entreparents is the needle threading together Monaco’s community and services. Johanna describes, “In collaboration with Radio Monaco, we have launched their first on-air series dedicated to parenting called Come, Let’s Chat. Once a month on the Feel Good Morning Show with Giulia Testaverde, you will find our experts and parents of our network chatting about all things parenthood. We also have an agreement with the CHPG Maternity Department to be part of their multi-disciplinary team working together to develop the available services.”
It was Anna who had the idea of a free and easy-to-use app, as she knew someone who started a similar concept in the UK. “Facebook groups are very useful but can be difficult to find the information you’re looking for scrolling through previous questions and answers,” Anna explains. “The app has instant chat and dedicated group chats to help find information more easily. Our aim is to help make the pathway into parenthood more supported and serene.”
Anna Campbell, Johanna Damar and Clémence Perrin at the Maison des Associations.
The Entreparents app in English and French was launched in fall 2023 and has more than 880 users, mostly French-speaking parents in Monaco. Johanna, Anna, Clémence and Emilie are hoping more English-speaking mums and dads will download it.
The app is a super resourceful tool with a 24/7 chat feature. Users’ questions range from helping babies sleep and toddler behaviour to doctor contact information and where to buy certain products. The dedicated chat groups deal with topics including post-partum, childcare, nutrition and infertility. The chat is mediated by Agnès Guénin, a psychomotor therapist specialising in perinatal care and parenting support.
There’s also an information feature to guide new and future parents each step of the way with helpful general information and hospital appointment reminders, from pre-pregnancy through the child’s first three years.
The app’s calendar informs parents of local events for families to enjoy together. “Our most recent event was Let’s Meet Infertility: an invisible pain,” says Anna. “It was a big gathering of local experts with mums sharing their infertility journey. It helped to show the network that is available to anyone struggling and to create a conversation and support in the community.”
Their next event is Global Day of Parents on Saturday June 1, at Neptune Monaco Beach (reservations a must by email). The family-friend celebration starts with breakfast from 9:30 am. There will be a kids’ corner, activities, a bouncy castle (till 11:30 am offered by My Sweet Birthday) and mini massage sessions for little ones in partnership with the Maman Bulle, and a massage area for parents.
With the help of Kids & Co Monaco, the beach restaurant will become dedicated to families, equipped with changing table, high-chairs, stroller parking, placemat colouring, children’s menu, and a festive lunch (paid per family), bubble machines and a baby-friendly photo booth. A DJ will play until 5 pm. The event will also launch “The Monaco Parenthood Support Committee” to give parents of the local community “an opportunity to have their voices heard”.
This will be the last in-person event before summer but the Entreparents team is already working on “Let’s Meet Halloween”. “This is our next biggest meet up with approximately 900 people usually joining us for trick or treat fun at Larvotto,” says Clémence.
As mums and wives in their late thirties and early forties, Johanna, Anna, Clémence and Emilie say their involvement depends first and foremost on availability outside family and work commitments. “We trust and respect each other enormously, and completely understand the daily challenges we each face as mothers and women,” says Anna. “We are carrying out this project together by sharing the same values and, above all, sharing the love for our children which is our real motivation.”
As Johanna puts it, “We’ve started a long-term movement to lay the foundations in our community for the years ahead, and for children like my daughter.”
Bon App!
The Entreparents app has financial support from Monaco Telecom, the Monaco government and the Monaco-registered Cuomo Foundation, which was set up in 2001 by Alfredo and Maria Elena Cuomo.
The Italian couple had one simple vision: to help vulnerable children in India with access to education and a chance at a better life. Other initiatives expanded in Europe and gradually to other regions of the world. After Alfredo’s passing in 2009, Maria challenged herself and the Foundation to evolve and broaden its goals, achievements and partnerships. Today, the Foundation remains active globally in the fields of education, social assistance, environmental research and culture.
Article first published May 30, 2024. Video and feature photo copyright Good News Monaco.
Rachel Burns remembers the exact moment she knew she wanted to be a pilot. “I was 8 years old, and I had seen a disaster movie about the plight of a 747.”
Rachel, who was a guest speaker at the Air League Monaco on June 21, was born in Barnsley, Yorkshire, and describes herself as an energetic kid, playing netball, the piano and joining the Air Training Corps run by the Royal Air Force.
As a captain for British Airways, she is the first in her family to enter the aviation field. “There are scholarships out there that require zero flight experience, and you only need English and Maths at GCSE or brevet level to get into those courses. But higher educational qualifications help to make you stand out amongst the applicants for very few places.” Rachel graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Durham University and went to get her Airline Transport Pilots Licence (ATPL), which you need in order to become a commercial pilot.
The mother of two started working for BA in 1998 and has remained with the airline ever since. “In 1997, BA footed the cost for my cadetship. I spent around 18 months training before I joined the company. BA paid for my training, and I was bonded to the company for the first 5 years of employment.”
Rachel recalls her first passenger flight as surreal. “Everything is exactly the same as the simulator until you see the passengers. Then the terror sets in!”
She credits her most beautiful in-flight moment to the day she passed her command check. “At the end of the flight, the training captain gave me my captain’s stripes and told me to go and say goodbye to the passengers. Then he made an announcement to the passengers that they were saying goodbye and thank you to British Airways’ newest captain. After the huge amount of work and effort to achieve the rank, it was such a touching moment, and the passengers all congratulated me as they disembarked.”
Captain Rachel Burns with Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou at Air League Monaco event on June 21, 2024.
And with so many hours in her logbook, she is sympathetic to passengers who have a fear of flying. “It’s an unknown to many people. In a car you can see out of the windscreen the world ahead of you but in a plane, you see very little through the window so it’s hard to get that sense of what’s going on and it causes a feeling of loss of control and panic. It’s a shame people can’t come to the flight deck any more during the flight because in the days before 9/11 frightened passengers could come and see what’s actually going on and with was the full horizon rather than the partial view of either land or sky that you see through a window.
“We cured many a nervous flier back then. Also, you should think of turbulence as a potholed or cobbled street. The car bounces as it goes over it and may dip into a pothole but you’re still supported by the road. It’s the same in the air. The unsettled air causes bumps under the wings and that feels like the bumpy road.”
Over the years, her nerves of steel have served her well. Once she operated a flight from Heathrow to Denver with one of the air conditioning packs not working. Normally two packs working at a higher flow rate was equal to all three working in the basic mode. It was hot on the plane, and she expected it to cool once the engines were running and the aircraft airborne. It never cooled. “It was 29°C throughout the plane. The crew took off their ties and unbuttoned the tops of the shirts. I had to walk through the cabin to explain to people the situation. It was fantastic to see the turnaround in the passengers’ attitude when they spoke to the pilot. Initially they were largely angry and frustrated but by the end they were all having a fun bonding experience laughing about having cocktails and suggesting new crew uniforms including grass skirts or shorts. We landed in Denver and got off the plane to 30°C weather!”
Since the birth of her children, Rachel has worked 50% part time, taking work trips during a 14-day period then having 14 days off. She explains that a full-time roster will be around six 3- or 4-day trips or four to five longer trips. “When you’re on ‘home standby’ you need to be able to reach the airport within two hours. As I live abroad – outside of Nice – this means on home standby I have to be in a hotel near Heathrow. For short-haul crews there is also ‘airport standby’ where pilots have to wait at the airport to fill in for uncrewed flights immediately.”
By law, pilots can only be at the controls of an aircraft for a certain number of hours. “On long flights we have a spare pilot who takes over from one of the operating pilots to enable them to have a break. The break is taken in a bunk. On the 777 the flight crew (pilot) bunk is above the first few rows of seats. The cabin crew have bunks at the back of the plane in the roof above the last few rows of seats.”
According to the British Airways Gender Pay Gap Report 2023, the UK’s flag carrier has approximately 6.6% female pilots, which is above the national average of 5%. In 2023, the airline introduced the Speedbird Academy, a fully-funded pilot programme, to support our drive to improve representation in the pilot community. “When I joined in 1998, there were less than 50 females out of about 2,800 total pilots, which equates to just over 1%. As a women pilot, I do think I have to work harder and be better in order to be taken seriously although whether that is my perception or genuinely required is up for debate,” says Rachel.
“It is a male dominated environment but I have always been a bit of a tomboy, so I fit in anyway. I only ever once experienced offensive sexism at my time at BA. It was from a male captain who later lost his command due to incompetence. Karma is sweet!”
Rachel adds that the sexism she encountered came from outside the industry. “Before I became a pilot, people used to say it was an impossible job for me. At school or talking to people in general, there was a lot of opposition.”
And if she had listened to the naysayers? “I would have been a primary school teacher. I’m glad I never had to be though!”
Article first published June 23, 2024. Photos courtesy of Vanessa Ilsley.
Joyce Carol Oates (centre) at the 2024 Prix Fitzgerald event at Hôtel Belles Rives. Photo: Grégoire Bernardi/AP Content Services for Hôtel Belles Rives)
The 2024 Prix Fitzgerald literary award was presented to Joyce Carol Oates on June 7 at the Hôtel Belles Rives, the iconic hotel in Juan-les-Pins where F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote Tender is the Night.
Oates was on hand Friday to accept the accolade for her novel, 48 Clues into the Disappearance of My Sister(October 2023; Philippe Rey), “the story of a woman named Georgina Fulmer, who is searching for her missing sister, Marguerite Fulmer. The narrative explores themes of sibling rivalry and the mysteries surrounding Marguerite’s disappearance through a series of clues and emotional revelations.”
In her acceptance speech the American writer thanked the jurors, and Marianne Estène-Chauvin for “the privilege of being a guest at this fabled place, so commemorated by F. Scott Fitzgerald in the very site in which the 1926, nearly a century ago, Fitzgerald spoke of experiencing ‘strange, precious, and all too transitory moments, when everything in one’s life seems to be going well,’ so I think I will end on that note. Transitory moments when everything in life seems to be going well.”
Oates, who was first published in 1963 for a short-story collection By the North Gate and has since written 70 novels, was up against some of the year’s biggest works of literature – Ian McEwan’s Lessons (October 2023, Gallimard); Irene Manuel’s Villas (January 2024; Du Sous-Sol); Christian Kracht’s Eurotrash (January 2024, Denoël); and Caroline O’Donoghue’s The Rachel Incident, published January 2024 Mercure de France). The five titles were French-language editions.
Marianne Estène-Chauvin created the French literary award in 2011 to honour a novel or short story that embodies “the elegance, wit, taste for style, and art of living of the American writer Francis Scott Fitzgerald.” At yesterday’s award ceremony, she commented, “Joyce Carol Oates’ ability to weave intricate and compelling narratives is unmatched. Her exploration of the human psyche and relationships, particularly in 48 Clues into the Disappearance of My Sister, exemplifies the elegance and depth that the Fitzgerald Prize seeks to honour.” Estène-Chauvin is also President of the Francis Scott Fitzgerald Academy and owner of the Belles Rives.
Recent winners have included Quentin Tarantino (#1 New York Times bestselling Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), who personally accepted the Prix Fitzgerald in 2023 for his work Cinema Speculation, as well as Jonathan Dee, Jeffrey Eugenides, Jay McInerney, Christopher Bollen and William Boyd.
Members of the jury selected the nominees in March. The French jury was led by journalist Bertrand de Saint Vincent, deputy director of Le Figaro and literary columnist. Members were radio journalist Daphné Roulier-De Caunes; author of the unauthorized biography Le N°5 de Chanel, Marie-Dominique Lelièvre; Figaro film critic Eric Neuhoff; L’Obs editor-in-chief, François Armane; literary critic Fréderic Beigbeder; Le Point deputy editorChristophe Ono; and actress Hélène Fillières.
The ceremony wrapped up with a Writers’ Dinner held in the exclusive Cap d’Antibes setting.
Article first published June 8, 2024. Photos: Gregoire Bernardi/AP Content Services for Hôtel Belles Rives.
Jess Rad wanted to be a music teacher. Instead, the 2024 National Diversity Award nominee founded The WomenHood to tackle the unspoken challenges of womanhood, menopause and gender equity.
“The world needs more women in all the positions that decisions are being made. It isn’t just about getting women into leadership but we need to be powerful in our lives and all those places in order to have a trickle-down effect and change the world for the next gen,” says Jess, who is half Persian and grew up in Suffolk in the east of England.
WATCH VIDEO ABOVE: The WomenHood founder Jess Rad talks about the unspoken challenges of womanhood and menopause, and her 2024 National Diversity Award nomination.
The older sister to five siblings says she has always been an advocate of equality even though she had limited beliefs about building her own business. “My dissertation was on the ‘Deconstruction of the Working Woman’ because it perplexed me. I wanted to know how I could be a full-time mother, much like my mom, and the ambitious entrepreneurial person that I was, like my dad. I interviewed 20 senior leadership women at Disney where I worked and, fundamentally, the more they made, the more they outsourced.”
The 42-year-old says that, like most women, she is juggling a lot. “It’s extremely easy to continue to put the needs of everyone else above our own and most of us are pretty expert at that.”
When UK-based Jess became a mom in 2013, she had only been living in Brighton for a year and was keen to be part of her local community. On “one cold December evening” she brought together nine women, all strangers, at the local pub. The next time they were 15. Fast forward a few years and this group was nearly 250. “My conversations with dozens of women were clearly showing me how often we were struggling with a similar challenge, yet due to society shrouding it in shame or secrecy; or perhaps due to the time-poor nature of our lives, we were failing to have the time and space to explore these challenges that were impacting our daily quality of life and often our long-term health.”
Photo: Hayley Samartin
After quitting her job, “and with the help of seven amazing women”, Jess set up The WomenHood in 2019. “I advocate for 1% change because I know how inaccessible change can feel to many women today. The first Unspoken Session was held in November, connecting women with amazing female experts to help them stop, listen, learn, share and reflect on their own lives. It was a huge success and since then every guest of every session has said they would recommend us to a friend.”
Through live virtual experiences called The Unspoken Sessions (like Unspoken Women Lives on Instagram), The WomenHood platform connects and supports women on everything from women’s health issues and financial wellbeing to perfectionism and people pleasing. It tackles the hidden realities of relationships, undiagnosed neurodiversities, the confidence gap, burn out and boundaries.
The social entrepreneur also launched The WomenHood at Work “to enable employers to unite their teams and collectively find new ways to support women, while increasing compassion, solidarity and empathy amongst all staff via unspoken conversations.”
But the subject she regularly returns to is the menopause “because it is the one unspoken challenge that every woman will encounter”. This led to the creation of The Menopause Collection. “I was diagnosed with premature menopause at 38 in 2020, so I know first-hand how destructive yet transformative this transition can be in a woman’s life,” emphasises Jess, who is a UK Delegate to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women.
“It’s a crying shame that women are benchmarked against the male characteristics. Women are going through their lives without fully understanding their own neurobiology, their own physiology … and I think women are suffering needlessly.’
Jess points out the most common thread is a lack of education and awareness of perimenopause. “There are 34 symptoms, many of which are not known, and with the cognitive ones often beginning first – such as anxiety, insomnia, memory loss –– it’s very difficult to disentangle what feels like unsurprising experiences that many women feel while juggling work/life/children/relationships/and the many demands on them. So the most regular conversation I have with women is helping them understand how to identify it in themselves and find help from a GP or nutritional therapist.”
The Amaze Charity Ambassador adds, “I feel fortunate to have been a part of this menopause revolution from the beginning and to now be very connected to many founders and talented experts in this area. So much so that, in addition to the Menopause Collection on the website there is also Menopause at Work, for businesses to enable organisations to support their female staff.”
Jess Rad with The WomenHood advisor Lisa Ardley-Price. Photo: Hayley Samartin
Jess admits she is also fortunate to have “an extremely loving and supportive family who have been my rocks” especially over the past few tumultuous years, which included divorce and discovering neurodivergent traits last year. “My Mum, always at the end of the phone to listen and reassure. My sister Victoria immediately shining a light on the opportunity to become ‘the architect of my own life’. And my Dad who forced me to think five years ahead. Very difficult, when you can barely see past the day in front of you.”
She decided to start open water swimming. “I really don’t like the cold, I’m not a strong swimmer and generally wasn’t really an outdoorsy kind of person. However, I got in and absolutely loved it! Of course, I had chosen the right month to start, September is the warmest month of the year.”
She met some other women via the Salty Seabirds community and as autumn began “not only did the cold water undoubtedly and immediately increase my stress resilience and totally change my mood but the connections I’d made with the regulars in our little group became deep and important friendships, too.” They formed their own group, the Early Birds and they’d meet at 6:30 am to swim, regardless of the weather, waves or darkness.
“These early morning winter swims really did change my life. Having also never been a morning person, I found myself getting up at 6 am several times a week, at times having to de-ice the car or wear two coats due to the bitter cold, to go and meet these amazing women in the pitch black and strip down to a swimsuit and face the waves, and our fears, lit only by the moonlight.
“There was something quite magical under these circumstances. So early in the morning. No time or need for make up or to do your hair. No clothes to identify, define or separate us. Just a swimsuit and some gloves and boots. United by our courage and resilience to keep going in despite the height of the waves, despite our fears of the cold, or what may lay beneath. Time again, we showed ourselves and each other how capable we were. My mantra in my head each time was: ‘If I can do this, I can do anything. If I can do this, I can do anything.’ And with those women by my side, I did.” Jess and some of the Early Birds went on to become swimrunners and crossed the Finish Line at the 2022 ÖtillÖ Isles of Scilly Experience Swimrun.
Public speaker Jess has been nominated for the 2024 National Diversity Awards as a Positive Role Model for Gender, in association with ITV (you can vote here.) “I’ve learned you shouldn’t try to do it all. A founder has the idea but you can’t be great at everything so you have to find other people. Recruit for your weaknesses.”
Article first published May 4, 2024. Photos copyright Hayley Samartin.
Jo Salter never set out to be a jet fighter pilot. Nor could she ever have imagined one day being named one of the 50 Most Inspiring Women in the World, and by two media outlets, the BBC and Harpers & Queen (now Harper’s Bazaar).
No siree. In 1981, 13-year-old Jo Salter wanted to be a hairdresser and hung out at her local salon in Croydon. Why would she dream of flying 25 tonnes of screaming metal at 800 miles an hour at the height of a tree when legally women were not allowed to fly in the military at the time?
Speaking to the Air League of Monaco on April 4 at the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation HQ, the British pilot said she never set out to become the first operational female Royal Air Force combat fighter pilot. It was her mom who encouraged her to study chemistry, physics and biology, and French “because it will buy you opportunity”.
Jo loved math and entertained the idea of becoming an accountant until the day a WISE (Women in Science and Education) Bus stopped by her school. One of the visitors told her,
“If you study accountancy, you can just be an account. If you study engineering, you can be whatever you want in the world.”
As Jo described it, “I went home and told mom I wanted to be whatever I could in the world. She said I needed to find sponsorship.”
Guest speaker Jo Salter with Monaco Air League president Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou on April 4, 2024.
Jo did not come from a military background but that year was the first time the Royal Air Force (RAF) was offering scholarships to women, and it was worth more than the others she applied for. At 18 she joined the RAF and embarked on a 3-year Electronic Systems Engineering degree.
“The year I graduated in 1989 was the first year the British government allowed women to fly in the military but not fast jets,” she stated. Was that the moment she chose to become a pilot? She laughs and says she chose to do the required aptitude tests because “they were close to where my mom lived.” As a result, she was relaxed for the tests, and having fenced from the age of seven, she had highly developed hand-eye coordination and scored well.
21-year-old Jo, who is 163 cm (5’ 3”) tall, was offered the chance to become a pilot. She started in a De Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk – a 2-seat, single engine primary trainer aircraft. “People said I was too short but airplanes have been designed around men not human beings. In the Chipmunk, I sat on a few cushions.” And it was love at first flight. “That first flight I fell in love with the peace I get up high up above the earth.”
After 66 hours and 5 minutes controlling the Chipmunk, she moved on to the side-by-side trainer aircraft, the Jet Provost (JP5) with injection seat. She waited in line to practice the manoeuvre on a rig but when her turn arrived, she was told she couldn’t go on it. “We don’t know what might happen to you,” she was told. “You do realise your womb might pop up.”
Jo recalled, “When you are trying to be similar, you end up being set apart when they don’t allow you to do what all the guys are doing.”
Half way through the year, the RAF trainees are streamlined into fast jet, multi-engine or rotary (helicopter) flying training. If Jo had been a man, she would have been a fighter pilot with her scores but instead she was pointed toward multi-engine. Her flight commander stepped and challenged the decision. “What if I covered her face? Where would you send a pilot with these scores?” The response from the decision makers was: “Okay, as long as she promises not to make any trouble.”
Her fighter pilot training is in the Hawk T2 – “a transonic, 2-seat training aircraft used by the RAF to train pilots to fly fast jet combat aircraft.” Her first flight was at 420 knots low level (below 500 feet) around Wales but she also remembers flying at 45,000 feet. “I saw the curvature of the earth for the first time and it was most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
By the time Jo’s pilot training comes to an end in 1993, the Royal Navy had allowed women on ships. This again changed the law for women’s rights in the military and she can now go on to be a fast jet pilot flying the Tornado Panavia. (At that point she was one of only five women fighter pilots in the world). “Flying is easy – you go left, right, up, down and forward. But a fast jet pilot is all about capacity to think and situational awareness. It is the only thing harder than being an F1 driver.”
Flight Lieutenant Salter is posted to Squadron 617, “The Dambusters,” (known for their precision bombing of German dams during the Second World War). Seven out of eight squadrons said no when asked if the would take a woman. No. 617 asked, “Is she a good pilot?”
“I was 24 years old, and nervous. When I arrived, a senior navigator meets me to say, ‘Jo you are not welcome here and we are going to get rid of you.’ He enabled me to do the job.”
As part of crew cooperation, the co-pilots are taught to do have a capture conversation about what they’d do if they get shot down. The senior navigator informed Jo, “Whichever way you go, I will be going the opposite direction.”
As Jo described, “Why are you saying that? What was it about the dynamic that wasn’t working. I needed to be the best crew that we could be while we were making decisions together. You’ve got burning jet crashing down beside you, you have a parachute landing in hostiles … You are not going to leave the only person you know.”
Jo found the only way she could connect with him was to offer to caddy for him during a golf game, which he readily accepted. She admits this is not something she would do today.
You can become a member of the Air League of Monaco for an annual fee of €150. Founded in November 2013 with a mission to promote “air-mindedness in the young”, today the Monaco charity counts 230 members including 135 junior members.
“There are difficulties being the first in anything. You feel like you are being watched all the time.” Jo cited the expression, “There are old pilots, bold pilots but not old bold pilots.” And admits that she, like all fighter pilots with heathy egos, became over-confident at times and made mistakes. But she always took responsibility.
Jo completed several NATO exercises in a “no-fly zone” over Iraq and went on to become an Honorary Group Captain training thousands of air cadets. “I believe in service and for 12 years have been flying air cadets,” said the author of two books, Energy – 52 ways to fire up your life and Become an Energy Angel”and Energize: Spring Clean Your Mind And Body To Get Your Bounce Back Today And Every Day.
After leaving the military, Jo went to become “an advocate for women in the military, inspiring female pilots around the world to continue to obliterate glass ceilings.” But it has only been in the last seven years or so that the RAF has truly embraced her as a spokesperson. She is now a sought-after public speaker and Director of Global Transformative Leadership at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
She met Queen Elizabeth in October 2018 when she showed Her Majesty, who was Patron of the Royal Air Force Club, a new stained-glass window commemorating the role of women in the RAF. Jo was awarded an MBE for services to aviation in the 2022 New Year Honours, the final New Year’s Honours appointed by the Queen.
In June of that same year, she met Tom Cruise on the red carpet for the premier of Top Gun: Maverick in London’s West End. “Tom Cruise asked to meet me,” Jo told me. “We discussed G-force and flying. He then spent the day at the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford and I hosted him for the day.” (While Jo has flown 7-G, Tom has flown 9-G, the highest the human body is able to withstand.) By the way, Jo’s pet peeve is watching movies with fast jet pilots when their oxygen masks are hanging down and they are speaking. “Just crazy!”
Looking back to those early years of training, Jo Salter emphasised that there were good people in the RAF. “I was told it must have been my sense of humour but they didn’t see me go to the officer’s mess and calling my mom up and crying my heart out saying, ‘It doesn’t matter that I am a good pilot, they are not ready for me to do that.’
“But they are now,” she smiled.
The latest UK Armed Forces Biannual Diversity Statistics reports women make up 11.7% of UK Regular Forces and are best represented in the RAF, where they make up 15% of regular personnel. A 2021 study by the International Society of Women Airline Pilots revealed less than 6% of pilots worldwide are women. In France, according to the Association of Female Pilots the proportion of licensed female aviators is 10%.
Angelica Fuentes Garcia had a very happy childhood growing up in Mexico. Along with her three siblings, she was always encouraged to follow her passion. “The smell of petrol has been around since birth,” Angelica expresses. “My grandfather raced, and my father raced rally cars back in the Sixties.
WATCH VIDEO above with Angelica talking about the Monte 100 Touristique. (Apologies for the sound issues.)
She is the second of four children following in their paternal footsteps (at one point, three of them were rallying). “When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a chef. I am still passionate about cooking but my passion for cars was greater and I started navigating for my father at age 13 and drove my first rally that same year.”
Angelica and her two sisters were “fortunate enough” to attend the Maddox Academy, one of the best girls’ schools in Mexico, where she had a bilingual education in English and Spanish from the age of four. A “generally sporty” kid, she played on the basketball and volleyball teams at school.
As a co-driver, Angelica was the first woman to win the Mexican Rally Championship in 2002, as well as having several successful seasons of rallying in England, where she ended up living. “Marriage was the reason I went to London in 2003 after I met my Scottish husband on my favourite motorsport events, La Carrera Panamericana in Mexico, which I’ve competed in 29 times.”
Having started driving in rallies more than 40 years ago, Angelica has competed in over 300 national and international events, including 13 times in the Chihuahua Express in Mexico, four times at the American rally Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in Colorado, the Modena Cento Ore in Italy, which includes a leg in Florence, and Australia’s Targa Tasmania.
VIDEO: Angelica and Keith arrive in Monaco as part of the Monte 100 Touristique.
The 54-year-old has done the Rallye Monte Carlo Historique four times. This year she is here for the Monte 100 Touristique.
The Monte 100 Touristique marks the 100th anniversary of the first Glasgow Start of the Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique. Cars left from Blythswood Square on Wednesday, January 31, and took in many of the famous Cols and Passes in the French Alps before reaching Monte Carlo on February 3 at 3 pm.
Angelica arrived with her husband, Keith Mainland (WATCH VIDEO above). It was the longest rally they have driven in a rally together. “In my experience, as a co-driver having done four historic Monte Carlo rallies, there is a lot of preparation before and during the race. Team work and concentration are crucial to have a successful event as maintaining the speed and not getting lost on the regularity section is so important. With the added atmosphere of competing at night, it is a unique event.”
For Angelica, there is more to a rally than cars and competition. She uses motorsport to help raise awareness and money for Lyme disease (see box below). “I was diagnosed in 2016 after seven months of struggling, not knowing what was wrong with me but watching my health deteriorate. It has taken 22 doctors in two different continents to get a proper diagnosis.”
Eight years into her battle against Lyme disease Angelica points out, “The main impact for many people with Lyme disease, including myself, is that because there is no cure we have to learn how to live with symptoms and still function at the same time.”
The illness has quality-of-life impairing symptoms, which can leave sufferers with chronic fatigue and a diminished ability to concentrate. For Angelica, this means getting proper rest before events like the Monte-Carlo Historic Rally.
“Motorsport has been my biggest anchor to fight back and, at the same time, to raise awareness for this horrible illness to help others get a diagnosis. The disease is under the radar for doctors, yet more and more people suffer from it around the world.”
Angelica Fuentes Garcia and Keith Mainland.
Article first published February 3, 2024.
Do You Have Lyme Disease? Many of the celebrities diagnosed with Lyme disease – Alec Baldwin, Justin Bieber, Ben Stiller, Shania Twain, Bella Hadid and Amy Schumer – have been outspoken about the debilitating symptoms suffered from the tick-borne zoonotic disease.
According to a study published in 2022 by BMJ Global Health, nearly 14.5% of the world’s population “probably has, or has had, tick-borne Lyme disease, as indicated by the presence of antibodies in the blood.”
Early symptoms of Lyme disease, typically appearing within 3 to 30 days after a tick bite, can include a skin rash, fever, headache, and fatigue. Long-term chronic Lyme disease can lead to damage to the joints, nervous system and heart.
