Princess Charlene of Monaco cuts a glamorous determine on the Grand Prix
Princess Charlene of Monaco cut a glamorous figure at the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Monaco in Monte-Carlo on Sunday.
The royal, 44, attended the principality’s annual race – one of the most famous grand prix in the world – with her husband Prince Albert of Monaco, 66.
Wearing a smart navy blue jumpsuit by Louis Vuitton and a pair of large black sunglasses by the same French designer, Charlene achieved an elegant look that still made a statement.
With a double-breasted blazer and wide-leg trousers, the jumpsuit was a stylish alternative to the more feminine dresses that other guests chose to wear.
Charlene, a lover of fashion, completed her outfit with a pair of £890 Louis Vuitton slingback pumps in black and beige and the designer’s Ombre Blossom extra-large hoops in pink gold and diamonds.
Princess Charlene of Monaco (pictured) cut an elegant figure in a navy blue jumpsuit by Louis Vuitton on Sunday
The royal, 46, sported a pair of Louis Vuitton sunglasses, only adding to the glamourous look
Princess Charlene smiled as she embraced the winner, Ferrari’s Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc (left)
With her short blond hair brushed to one side and only subtle make-up, the smiling mother-of-twins looked fresh-faced at the event, which saw her embrace the winner, Ferrari’s Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc, as he took to the podium to claim his trophy.
Prince Albert, meanwhile, looked typically smart in a navy blazer and a pair of cream trousers.
To protect himself from the sun, he sported an event cap along with a pair of dark sunglasses, both of which he removed when it came to congratulate Leclerc.
It was a further sign that the former Olympic swimmer, has well and truly put her health woes behind her after she spent almost a year away from the Mediterranean principality in her native South Africa, undergoing treatment for an unspecified condition.
The rumour mill went into overdrive when Charlene spent most of 2021 away from her husband after returning to her native South Africa for what was supposed to be a month-long trip.
She wasn’t pictured in Monaco from January 2021 until March 2022, citing a sinus issue which stopped her from flying.
She missed the seventh birthday of her twins Gabriella and Jacques and her tenth wedding anniversary with Albert.
In interviews at the time, Albert explained he had stepped up to play a bigger role in his children’s lives as the family coped with Charlene’s ongoing health issues.
Upon her return to the principality, Albert claimed she was ‘overwhelmed’ and ‘unwell’ and had to check into a private clinic in Switzerland to be treated for ‘exhaustion’.
Speaking to People magazine at the time, Albert said the family reunion in Monaco initially went ‘pretty well’ in the first few hours, but it then became ‘pretty evident’ that Charlene was ‘unwell.’
He said the former Olympian ‘realised she needed help’, adding: ‘She was overwhelmed and couldn’t face official duties, life in general or even family life.’
The Monegasque royals appeared to be enjoying the event together, with Charlene putting her arm around her husband at one point and leaning in towards him as he was speaking.
Whilst she was able to mask any awkwardness, Charlene may well have been anxious about bumping into Prince Albert’s former mistress, who was also in attendance on Sunday.
Earlier in the day, Nicole Coste – who dated Albert in secret for seven years and shares a son with the royal – posted on her Instagram that she would be attending the event.
The fashion designer, who met the royal while working as a flight attendant in 1997, shared a photo of herself dressed in a white trench coat and admiring the view from the venue.
Aligning herself with the Ferrari team, Nicole gushed: ‘We are waiting for the victory of Charles Leclerc the the country’s child. Loving this jacket!’
The Monegasque royals appeared to be enjoying the event together with Charlene putting her arm around her husband at one point
Charlene beamed as she embraced Leclerc as he took to the podium to claim his trophy
Prince Albert, 66, looked on as his stunning wife, a former Olympian swimmer, posed for the cameras
Prince Albert prepared to open a huge bottle of champagne to congratulate Leclerc
Both Princess Charlene and Prince Albert were beaming as Leclerc sprayed his teammates with the champagne
Albert and Nicole’s liaison became the best-kept secret in Monaco society. Although they both attended red carpet events and mixed with socialites and celebrities, the majority of Albert’s subjects knew nothing of the relationship.
Ahead of her 2011 wedding to Prince Albert, Charlene reportedly fell out with Nicole after she put her step-son Alexandre up in the Palace’s staff wing.
While she has previously had a frosty relationship with Albert too – claiming he ‘doesn’t want to see his son’ – she has recently lavished praise on the monarch.
On his birthday, Nicole shared a photo with him. The caption read: ‘Happy birthday Albert. The world will recognise you as The Loyal, the Dignity, the KING’.
In November 2022, she shared another shot of Albert with Alexandre and Jazmin in New York, New York, with the cheeky caption: ‘ Paternally king’.
Charlene leaned in as her husband, who sported dark sunglasses and an event cap, was speaking
Princess Charlene has shared a sweet photo with her twins Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella to mark Monaco’s Mother’s Day
The Monaco royals were further rattled earlier this year when Prince Albert’s former accountant made a string of allegations about their finances.
He claimed that Princess Charlene hired illegal immigrants on less than £90-a-day while her personal spending allowance rocketed to more than £1million-a-year.
Claude Palmero, 67, was in charge of palace finances for more than two decades but stepped down in July 2023 after he was targeted by an anti-corruption website.
His ‘secret notebooks’ detailing the spending of the Monaco royal family have now been shared with French newspaper Le Monde, and it was the ‘illegal migrants’ who made up much of Charlene’s full-time personal staff of eight that Mr Palmero was particularly worried about.
‘Her Serene Highness the Princess makes people work for her who are not compliant,’ Mr Palmero warned Prince Albert, also referring to ‘a moonlighting Filipino woman who ties up dogs in the shower.’
In a letter written in January 2017, he said another employee from the Philippines had been ‘illegal for five years’, despite solely being on a one-month tourist visa.
