Czech President Miloš Zeman has never been one to do things by halves. His mastery in the art of consuming inordinate quantities of alcohol is the stuff of legend, while his formidable smoking once led another senior politician to complain that he felt like a piece of smoked meat in the president’s presence.
Two years ago, at the age of 75, Zeman took the prudent step of cutting down to only two packets of cigarettes a day – leading some to hope that his health might improve. Yet it’s now feared the colourful president’s lifestyle may finally be catching up with him. Zeman was rushed to a central Prague hospital on October 10, the day after a nail-biting Czech election was won by an opposition pro-EU coalition.
The hospital has since refused to break patient confidentiality laws by revealing details of Zeman’s condition – inevitably sending the rumour mill into overdrive.
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