Prince Albert II in Taranto: visit to the Mediterranean Games and support for Monaco's 17 athletes
Prince Albert II of Monaco visited the anniversary 20th Mediterranean Games Taranto 2026 on 25 August 2026, where he directly supported the Monegasque national team consisting of 17 athletes competing in eight sports. His arrival also had a strong symbolic dimension: Albert II is not only the head of state and president of the Monegasque Olympic Committee, but also a former Olympian who represented Monaco five times in bobsleigh. According to a report by the Italian agency ANSA, during his one-day programme the prince visited several competition venues in Taranto and the surrounding area, followed the performances of athletes, met representatives of the organisers and particularly emphasised his satisfaction with the atmosphere and organisation of the Games. Following his visit, the International Committee of Mediterranean Games announced that it represented a continuation of the long-standing support that the Monegasque ruler provides to the Mediterranean sports movement. The visit thus combined the personal experience of a former Olympian, the institutional role of president of the national Olympic committee and support for one of the smallest delegations at a major multisport competition.
From Grottaglie to Montemesola: first meeting with the Monegasque athletes
Albert II arrived in Apulia via Arlotta Airport in Grottaglie, a town in the immediate hinterland of Taranto, and his first important stop was the Palasport in Montemesola. There he followed the final stage of the competitions in the boules disciplines, which were concluding that day after a four-day programme. ANSA states that he paid particular attention to the performance of Monegasque veteran Alain Costa, who at the age of 69 was the oldest member of Monaco's national team at the Games and, according to competition reports, also one of the oldest participants in the entire event. In Montemesola he was welcomed by Mayor Vito Punzi, while security measures in and around the sports hall were strengthened because of his arrival. The prince also tasted local products, but sport remained at the centre of the visit: he followed the final contests and met representatives of the delegations and organisers. According to ANSA, he also witnessed the successes of Italian boules player Laura Picchio and San Marino representative Jacopo Frisoni.
The meeting in Montemesola carried additional institutional significance because Albert II met there with Iakovos Filippousis, Secretary General of the International Committee of Mediterranean Games. In a statement published on 26 August, the organisation said that through his visit the prince had once again reaffirmed his long-standing commitment to the Mediterranean Games and to the values that the organisers associate with them, above all friendship, solidarity and cooperation among the countries of the Mediterranean region. Filippousis thanked him not only for coming to Taranto but also for regularly attending previous editions of the competition. For Monaco, one of the smallest countries among the participants, such a competition has significance that goes beyond the medal table: it gives its athletes an opportunity to compete alongside representatives from substantially larger European, African and Asian sports systems.
Alain Costa as a symbol of experience in a young and diverse delegation
Before the start of the Games, the Monegasque Olympic Committee confirmed that Monaco would compete in Taranto with 17 athletes distributed across athletics, boules sports, equestrian sport, artistic gymnastics, judo, padel, table tennis and sailing. The delegation is a combination of very young competitors, experienced national team athletes and medal winners from previous editions of the Mediterranean Games. Alain Costa represents the most experienced end of that range, while 16-year-old Noah Minioni, a member of the padel pair with Nicolas Fedoroff, is the youngest athlete on the Monegasque team. Guillaume Campillo, his wife Sabrina Campillo and their daughter Giulia Campillo are also competing in the boules programme, giving that sport a pronounced family story for Monaco. Guillaume Campillo is competing in Taranto at his third Mediterranean Games, Sabrina at her second, while Giulia is taking part in the competition for the first time. According to data from the Monegasque Olympic Committee, Costa was entered in the men's pair, and his presence illustrates how the age structure of the delegation extends from teenage talents to athletes with decades of experience.
Experience is also evident in other sports. Table tennis player Xiaoxin Yang arrived in Taranto for her third Mediterranean Games after winning silver in Tarragona in 2018 and gold in Oran in 2022, and the Monegasque Olympic Committee states that she returned to the international scene after becoming a mother. Sailor Jérémy Moutout and judoka Marvin Gadeau are also participating for the third time, while gymnast Kévin Crovetto is competing at his fourth Mediterranean Games. On the other hand, athletes Marie-Charlotte Gastaud, Thomas Carreda and Téo Bottin are appearing at this multisport competition for the first time, as is sailor Louise Debeaumont. In equestrian sport, Monaco is participating in the team competition for the first time, with Eileen Delescule Thomel, Anastasija Nielsen and Iñigo López de La Osa Franco. For some athletes, Taranto is a continuation of a long national-team journey, while for others it is their first appearance on a major international multisport stage.
Sailing, padel and the swimming stadium in the continuation of the prince's programme
After the morning segment in Montemesola, Albert II continued his tour of sports venues in Taranto. ANSA reports that during the day he visited the sailing centre in the Mar Piccolo area, after which he went to the padel venue in Parco Mediterraneo Salinella, while the programme also included a visit to the swimming stadium. Before that, he had lunch aboard the cruise ship Aroya, located within the naval base that plays an important role in accommodating delegations during the Games. The Monegasque Olympic Committee states that a large proportion of participants are accommodated on two cruise ships moored at the naval base. Monaco also has a historical connection with such a model because during the 2007 Games of the Small States of Europe, some of the delegations were accommodated on a ship in Port Hercule.
At the padel venue, his visit produced a particularly visible moment. The International Padel Federation announced that Albert II watched matches on the centre court and took part in the ceremonial coin toss before the match between Portugal and France. He also met a number of prominent female players, including Sofia Araújo, Lucía Sainz, Patty Llaguno, Carolina Orsi and Giorgia Marchetti. The FIP described the prince as a great padel enthusiast and an active recreational player, so his arrival at this particular venue was not merely a protocol addition to the programme. Padel is particularly interesting for Monaco in Taranto because it is represented by Fedoroff and Minioni, and the Monegasque committee points out that this is their second appearance in the sport at a major international multisport event after the Kraków-Małopolska 2023 European Games. The visit to padel simultaneously highlighted one of the biggest programme innovations of this year's Mediterranean Games.
Padel awards medals at the Mediterranean Games for the first time
The International Padel Federation confirms that Taranto 2026 is the first edition of the Mediterranean Games at which padel has the status of a medal sport. The competition is being held in men's, women's and mixed categories, and before the start of the tournament the FIP announced that 88 athletes from 18 countries had been entered for the main programme. The first historic medals in the sport are scheduled to be awarded during the tournament finals on 28 August. The introduction of padel reflects its rapid growth in Mediterranean countries and the efforts of multisport events to adapt their programmes to new disciplines. During the same day, Albert II therefore followed both traditional sports such as boules and sailing and a discipline that is only beginning to establish its place at major international competitions. According to the International Committee of Mediterranean Games, roller skating is also making its debut in Taranto alongside padel.
For the Monegasque national team, the inclusion of padel in the official programme opened another opportunity to compete in a sport that has been expanding strongly in recent years. According to Monegasque reports, Fedoroff and Minioni achieved a historic victory against Albania by a score of 2:1 before losing 0:2 to France, making their performance one of the more notable moments at the beginning of the Games for the small delegation. In its preview of Taranto, the Monegasque Olympic Committee highlighted the combination of young talents and experienced competitors as well as continuity of participation. Monaco first competed at the Mediterranean Games in Barcelona in 1955, and by Oran 2022 it had recorded 16 appearances, so Taranto continues a tradition lasting more than seven decades.
A former Olympian in the stands, but also a long-standing sports official
Albert II's sporting biography explains why his visits to major competitions are regularly more than state protocol. According to the official biography of the Prince's Palace of Monaco, he competed at five Winter Olympic Games as a member of Monaco's bobsleigh team, from Calgary 1988 to Salt Lake City 2002. He has been a member of the International Olympic Committee since 1985 and president of the Monegasque Olympic Committee since 1994. In Taranto, he therefore appeared simultaneously as a ruler, sports administrator and former competitor familiar with the experience of preparation, representing a national team and life in an Olympic village. ANSA reports that he said he particularly wanted to come in order to experience the atmosphere of the Games and see the Monegasque athletes at the competition venues, while praising the organisation of the event. Visiting several venues in a single day fitted into his long-standing involvement in international sport.
His connection with the Mediterranean Games is also not new. In its statement following the meeting with the prince, the International Committee of Mediterranean Games emphasised his regular presence at different editions and his continuous support for the organisation. For the committee, the Games are also a platform linking national Olympic committees from three continents, while Monaco combines a small athlete base within that system with a long tradition of Olympic and Mediterranean participation. Because of his own Olympic past, Albert II is one of the few current heads of state who has personally competed at the Olympic Games. His appearance in Montemesola, at sailing, padel and the swimming stadium was therefore also a public confirmation of the institutional importance that Monaco assigns to international sport.
Taranto 2026 brings together 3,803 athletes from 26 countries
According to official data from the International Committee of Mediterranean Games published at the beginning of the competition, 3,803 athletes are registered for Taranto 2026, including 2,189 men and 1,614 women. Twenty-six countries are participating, along with a separate Athletica Vaticana delegation, and the programme is spread across 33 sports disciplines and 28 competition venues. The organisers have planned a total of 273 finals and the awarding of 1,853 medals, while around 3,000 volunteers were selected from more than 11,000 applicants. Athletics has the largest number of registered competitors, with 435, while Italy, with 497 athletes, is the largest national delegation, ahead of Türkiye with 335. The anniversary edition is being held from 21 August to 3 September 2026, and the official registration data provide a more definitive picture of the scale of the competition than earlier estimates published during preparations.
The Mediterranean Games were first held in 1951 in Alexandria and bring together countries from Europe, Africa and Asia connected with the Mediterranean region. Taranto is hosting the 20th edition, and competitions are not limited to the city itself but are distributed across a larger number of locations in Apulia. The organisers have also linked the event with the renovation and construction of sports facilities at several locations in Apulia, meaning that part of the Games' legacy is connected with the use of infrastructure after the competition ends. Albert II's visit came during the early stage of the two-week programme, when a large number of disciplines were still under way or had yet to begin, so it brought support to the Monegasque athletes as the competitions continued towards their conclusion.
Monaco between tradition, new sports and generational change
The Monegasque team in Taranto illustrates well the broader character of the Mediterranean Games. The same delegation includes a gold medallist from the previous edition, multiple participants, young debutants, members of the same family and athletes in a new medal discipline. Xiaoxin Yang brings the experience of medals from the table tennis competitions in Tarragona and Oran, Kévin Crovetto is already appearing at the Games for the fourth time, while Noah Minioni, at only 16 years of age, represents a new generation. Monaco is also opening a new chapter in the team equestrian competition by sending a team in that category for the first time. In boules, meanwhile, Alain Costa and the Campillo family demonstrate continuity in a discipline in which experience can carry a different weight than in sports whose peak performance is usually associated with younger age. This diversity was precisely one of the main themes of the Monegasque Olympic Committee's preview before the start of the competition.
Through his visit, Albert II made that story even more visible. Instead of remaining at a single protocol event, his schedule took him from Montemesola through the naval base and sailing centre to padel and the swimming stadium, enabling contact with athletes from several disciplines. According to statements by the organisers and sports federations, he praised the atmosphere and organisation, spoke with athletes and participated in the ceremonial part of a padel match. At the same time, the International Committee of Mediterranean Games described his presence as a continuation of the long-term support he gives to the movement rather than as an isolated visit to a single edition. For Monaco, whose 17 representatives make up only a small fraction of the total 3,803 registered athletes, such support increases the delegation's visibility regardless of the final number of medals. Competitions in Taranto continue until 3 September, so the full sporting performance of the Monegasque national team can only be assessed after all appearances have concluded.
Sources:
- ANSA - report on Prince Albert II's visit, the competition venues, meetings and his assessment of the organisation of Taranto 2026 (link)
- Comité Olympique Monégasque - official composition of the 17-member national team, sports, experience and biographical information about the competitors (link)
- International Committee of Mediterranean Games - statement on the meeting between Albert II and Secretary General Iakovos Filippousis and the prince's long-standing support for the Games (link)
- International Committee of Mediterranean Games - official data on 3,803 athletes, 26 countries, disciplines, medals, venues and volunteers (link)
- International Padel Federation - details of the prince's visit to padel and the ceremonial coin toss (link)
- International Padel Federation - programme of padel's historic medal debut, number of participants and finals schedule (link)
- Radio Monaco - results of the Monegasque padel pair and report on the prince's support for the delegation (link)
- ANSA - data on the infrastructure programme and sports facilities connected with Taranto 2026 (link)
- Prince's Palace of Monaco - official biography of Albert II, Olympic appearances and sporting duties (link)