It’s not every day you notice a prince standing beside you.
As I watched the Monaco gymnastic team at the GSSE games (Games of the Small States of Europe), there he was, standing beside me, Crown Prince Albert of Monaco, surveying the action below us on the stadium floor. He looked just like any other middle-aged man, so I just glanced and took no notice. My daughter did though. She also noticed the four burly bodyguards behind us in their matching track suits, doing their best to “blend in”.
“Mom,” she whispered, “Prince Albert is beside you.” Having lived in Monaco for a while, she knew what he looked like. I turned just as he stepped down into the seat in front of us and mouthed “wow” to my very pleased daughter.
The What and Why and Who of the GSSE
My visit to Andorra this summer happened to coincide with the Games of the Small States of Europe, which it was Andorra’s turn to host. To qualify for the GSSE, which began in 1985 to give small countries a chance to compete on a more level playing field, competing states must have populations of less than a million.
While the GSSE are not considered a part of the Olympic Games, they share some similarities like featuring summer sports and a focus on Olympic values. They are organized by their National Olympic Committees and hosted every second year by one of the countries, which include Andorra, Cyprus, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, San Marino and Montenegro. Athletes from smaller countries who don’t have a large number of athletes to draw from are given the opportunity to shine, thanks to these semi-annual games.
It was nice that the prince was there to watch his men’s gymnastics team compete at the large, modern venue in the city of La Vela, Andorra’s capital. And it was also nice for me to surreptitiously sneak a photo of him as he in turn photographed his team on the gymnasium floor. The bodyguards standing behind us made us a tad nervous though, so with a glance and a sigh at the prince seated in front of us, we departed.