Prince Albert to Wed Swimmer

Prince Albert of Monaco plans to wed his 30-year-old girlfriend, South African Olympic swimmer Charlene Wittstock, says a French gossip magazine. “While the date is not yet fixed, two sources confirm that preparations are under way for a royal wedding at the end of the summer,” reports Reuters, quoting Point de Vue magazine.

The prince, who turns 50 on Friday, has never been married and has two children with different women. He’s often portrayed as a playboy with a preference for models, but Albert has said in the past that he’ll marry in his own time. Succession rules require that only children born within marriage can succeed to the throne. (More Prince Albert II stories.)