Julien Médécin remains the only Monagasque Olympic medal winner, as of 2010. An architect, he received this bronze medal for his design of the Stadium for Monte Carlo in Fontvieille with a cycling track, a rugby and football pitch, and a nautical basin. The special feature of his plan was the need to wrest new ground from the sea through landfills. In fact, the stadium was not realized until 1939 in a reduced form. It was demolished in 1985 to make room for the new district of Fontvieille with a new stadium. The old stadium was located in the area of today’s Centre Commercial de Fontvieille.
Son of an architect himself, Julien Médécin was admitted to the École des Beaus-Arts in 1917. In 1921, he graduated with the plans for a country house. In the following years, he worked as an architect in Paris and Nice and became architect of the city of Monte Carlo. At the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes at Paris in 1925 Médécin also built the Pavillon de Monaco which was a luxurious residence reminiscent of Mediterranean Coast villas. The main front had three doors, the main façades were painted with bizarre frescos by Joseph Bouchon and the interior was painted by Émile Wéry, illustrating fruits and flowers. He joined the Société des architectes diplômés du gouvernement (S.A.D.G.) in 1944 and was appointed Knight of the Legion of Honor.
Monaco