Princess Charlene of Monacoboasted a resume of impressive accomplishments before she married into a dynastic family.
The princess was born Charlene Lynette Wittstock on January 25, 1978, in Zimbabwe.
Today, public statements from Charlene are few and far between.
It’s clear a lot has changed since she married into theHouse of Grimaldi.
Her mother, Lynette Humberstone Wittstock, could have competed as an Olympic diver.
Charlene promised her mother that she’d make it to the Olympics someday in her place.
Charlene finally accomplished her goal by qualifying for the 4x100 swimming relay.
She headed to the Summer Olympics in Sydney in 2000.
Even as her relationship with Prince Albert heated up, Charlene remained single-minded in her pursuit of athletic greatness.
“In the early stages of my relationship, I had no intention of moving from South Africa.
Swimming was my only goal,” she toldTatler.
But as her high-profile relationship progressed, injuries thwarted her athletic goals.
She stopped training for the 2008 Beijing Olympics and settled in Monaco.
“I was not emotionally prepared to retire or for the change of life that it entailed.”
Still, she felt like an outsider in her adopted home.
Soon after, Charlene got a team to help style and guide her, according to Vogue.
Charlene recalled feeling “insecure” and “terrified” of putting a foot wrong.
But soon, the style world’s heavy hitters swooped in.
Princess Grace was Albert’s mother, and she met a tragic end in a car accident in 1982.
When her son proposed to the similarly tall and blond Charlene, comparisons between the two women erupted.
But she wasn’t.
“The values of this religion profoundly touch me and correspond perfectly to my spirit,” Charlene said.
But Christiane Stahl, a palace adviser, told People there was nothing to the rumors.
“Charlene never left to go to the airport, nothing like that ever happened.
She was never upset and never wanted to stop the wedding.”
They may have found it when Princess Charlene appeared to shed some tears at the altar.
Debate raged about whether Charlene was crying due to sadness, happiness, or something else.
It took two years for Charlene to reset the air in an interview with The Times.
She attributed her tears to stress triggered by the rumors that had run rampant.
Still, this didn’t quell the rumors and negativity.
The couple honeymooned in South Africa, but accounts of her tears on the altar continued to dog them.
“I only have two people I consider friends here.
Above all, my true friends are my family.
My mother and two brothers are the only friends I need and the only people I trust.
I’m very grateful to have them.”
“And there’ll be other tragedies.
And look what’s happened.”
Even Albert himself seemed to allude to the curse in a statement to his subjects before his wedding.
“I want this day to mark a new starting point,” he said, according toThe Times.
And it might have worked for a while.
An anonymous friend insisted to The Times that Charlene was a devoted wife two years after their wedding.
Charlene is crazy about Albert," they said.
“There’s nothing more she wants than to make him happy.
She wants to be a good wife and make him proud.”
This added to the momentous changes in Charlene’s life.
But for once, rumors of marital discord waned, and the couple enjoyed several years of calm.
But in 2021, Charlene missed the couple’s 10-year wedding anniversary.
She decided to stay in her home country to convalesce, missing the milestone with her husband and kids.
He has been the most incredible support to me" (viaTatler).
Separation rumors went into overdrive.
Eyebrows were raised again when Charlene debuted an edgy new haircut.
Charlene later said it was hard to miss their anniversary.
Just when things were looking up, she was hospitalized again in September of that year.
Still, Prince Albert toldPeoplethe rumors “appalled” him.
He insisted Charlene was desperate to return home but unable because of her condition.
She finally went back to Monaco in November 2021 and then traveled to Switzerland for further recovery.
On December 21, 2021, Charlene posted a family Christmas illustration to herInstagramaccount.
“Wishing everyone a beautiful and safe festive season,” the caption read.
“My state of health is still fragile and I don’t want to go too fast.
The road has been long, difficult, and so painful,” she toldVanity Fair.
Williams interviewed Charlene for a South African radio station in 2011.
“I thought she was one of the most anxious people I have ever met,” she said.
“She was absolutely terrified of saying the wrong thing.
