Sporting Elegance

A visit to Monaco promises both spectacular sights—that azure sea!—and thrilling action. It hosts the world-famous Monaco Grand Prix, the prestigious Monte Carlo Masters tennis tournament, and the elite Herculis track and field meet, attracting thousands of sports enthusiasts every year. The tiny principality was also the favourite summer retreat destination of Chanel’s founder Gabrielle Chanel and its late creative director Karl Lagerfeld. These properties coalesced into a perfect backdrop for Chanel’s latest high jewellery collection launch, Haute Joaillerie Sport. Those well-versed in Chanel’s history know that sport has been integral to the house’s design ethos from its inception. Gabrielle Chanel famously declared, “Luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury.” An avid tennis player and horse rider herself, she not only created a design language that was remarkably…