Stephanie Watches Daughter Compete at Junior Olympic Games

While Princess Caroline of Monaco tried her hat Mexican-style on a charter yacht anchored off the Aeolian Islands, in the Tyrrhenian Sea, her sister, Princess Stephanie, was in Singapore to support daughter Pauline Ducruet, 16, in the Junior Olympic Games.

Recently, Princess Stephanie was pool side to support Miss Ducruet at the Junior European Championships in Helsinki. But on the occasion in Singapore, Pauline had the added support of others from her family, namely her pop, Daniel Ducruet, who was married to the Princess Stephanie for a very short time in the mid-90s; brother Louis, 18; half-sister Camille, 12; and her Olympian uncle, Sovereign Prince Albert II.

They all watched a little anxiously while Pauline dive off the 3-meter-high springboard. Yet no one was more anxious for Pauline than her mother, not even Pauline, a possibility the Princess admitted as she briefly spoke to the reporters covering the event. She might have been spared some of her natural anxiety if only she could have foreseen her girl’s result: tenth in the preliminaries!

Stephanie’s reaction to Pauline’s preliminary result, which qualified her for the finals, was utter amazement. Both of Pauline’s parents each took turns to throw their arms around her and kiss their joyful pride upon her. As the Princess told the reporters: “I am just like any other good mother. I am here to encourage my daughter.”

Pauline didn’t win a medal (she was 12th in the finals) but as her mother said, she loves diving and, while she would love to win, the real enjoyment stems from her experiences and friendships. To such a mother, she must always be a winner. Technically, the gold, silver, and bronze went respectively to the divers from China, Malaysia, and the Ukraine: Jiao Liu, Pandelela Pamg, and Viktoriya Potyekhina.

Meanwhile, on Monday Charlotte Casiraghi left her mother and sister on the boat to fly to Brazil and prepare for her participation in the final phase of the nine-phase Global Champions Tour. In June, Casiraghi posed for photographer Mario Testino, wearing the riding clothes especially designed for her by Gucci designer Frida Giannini. The accompanying interview and feature by Vicki Wood has been published in the US Vogue magazine’s September 2010 issue.

Filed under Monaco
Tagged Charlotte Casiraghi, Olympic Games, Pauline Ducruet, Princess Stéphanie of Monaco, Singapore, Sport.