According to Czech media, the president broke his arm in a fall when trying to walk unaided. The surgery is said to have gone well, and 75-year-old Zeman is now in post-operative care, ahead of an unspecified period of convalescence. Photo credit: Hrad.cz.
Czech Rep., Aug 26 (BD) – Czech President Milos Zeman, 75, underwent emergency surgery at the Military University Hospital in Prague last night, according to his spokesman Jiri Ovcacek. According to reports in Czech media, the president suffered a broken arm in a fall, after refusing to use his cane or support from his staff.
“The president will undergo surgery on his injured arm. It is not a life-threatening condition, the president is in contact with his family and his staff,” wrote Ovcacek on Twitter. The surgery is said to have gone as expected, and Zeman is now in post-operative care ahead of an unspecified period of convalescence. His schedule for the coming weeks, including his planned visit to South Moravia next week, will be adapted to his recovery.
Ovcacek told CTK that Zeman had fallen while trying to walk unaided on Tuesday evening: “He refused to use his cane or the aid offered by his security guards. He said he could manage to walk a short distance on his own, which he should not have done.”
Zeman has been President of the Czech Republic since 2013. His health has been a frequent topic of media speculation, especially in the run-up to his reelection as president in 2018. He uses his cane due to a nerve condition in his feet, and also suffers from type-2 diabetes and polyneuropathy, a related condition. He is also a heavy smoker and drinker.
The president and his team have consistently claimed that he is in good shape. “So far, I feel relatively good and fine for my age,” he told Czech tabloid Blesk in April. “At the age of 75, everyone has to reckon with the fact that there’s a coffin on the horizon. But I’m not complaining.” Speculation in November 2017 that Zeman was being treated for cancer led him to sue one Brno politician, Svatopluk Bartík (Zit Brno), for damages, a case that is still ongoing and is due to conclude in September.
