As Reuters report:

Prince Albert of Monaco, son of the late Hollywood star Grace Kelly, has brought forward his wedding with South African Olympic swimmer Charlene Wittstock by six days to avoid a clash with an International Olympic Committee meeting.

The couple will hold ceremonies in Monaco on July 2-3 next year, the prince’s palace said in a statement on Sunday.

“This is because a meeting of the International Olympic Committee is scheduled in Durban from 5 to 9 July and the couple wished for the presence of the Olympic family by their sides,” the palace said.

“The prince also wanted the princess’s first trip abroad to be to her homeland, South Africa.

The palace had said last month that the couple would hold a civil ceremony on July 8 followed by a religious marriage on July 9, in what is expected to be a star-studded event.

The last time Monaco celebrated a wedding of its ruling prince was in 1956, when Albert’s father Prince Rainier married Kelly.

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Setting the date: Prince Albert and Charlene Wittstock.  Monaco’s royal will tie the knot with the former Olympic swimmer in July 2011: a civil ceremony on July 8, the religious ceremony the following day.

Tuesday January 27 2009 is St. Devote day – St. Devote day is the patron saint of the Grimaldi family…

There’s been some unrest among some Monaco citizens after the abandonment (although officially it’s been termed postponement to try and soften the blow) of the island that was to be built off Monte Carlo, with some suggestions that if Prince Albert put Monaco’s needs ahead of his environment campaigns the costs wouldn’t have been as high, and the island would have gone ahead…

Shortly after the announcement Prince Albert left Monaco for a few weeks in Antarctica, and finished there this last week.

Our source tells us that the palace has been stung by some of the criticisms they have heard privately, and that some people have commented that it wouldn’t have happened while Prince Albert’s father was Sovereign.

And while they can’t do a lot about the island, they can urge Prince Albert to stop people getting fed up with the ‘will he, won’t he’ saga of marrying Charlene – hence the news from our source to stand by for an official announcement from the palace in the coming week or two.

The date for the wedding? June is a possibility once the Grand Prix run around the streets of Monte Carlo and Casino Square is out of the way, but September and early October dates are being looked at more favourably, possibly the weekend after the Monaco Yacht Show.

Could there be a royal wedding announcement this week? Here's a photo of Monaco Cathedral where the wedding will be held to remind Prince Albert what it looks like...