Sarkozy ‘fine’ but admits he needs to rest more

FRENCH President Nicolas Sarkozy yesterday said he had recovered from a dizzy turn while out jogging at the weekend, but acknowledged he needed to rest.

“I wanted to say to the French people that my health is good,” Sarkozy told reporters at the Elysee Palace after the last cabinet meeting before he leaves for the summer break with his wife Carla Bruni at her Riviera villa.

Sarkozy earlier issued a reassuring message on the social network site Facebook, but the remarks were his first in public since he was hospitalised last Sunday after feeling faint during a run in the gardens of the Palace of Versailles.

“We’re going to go with Carla and the children on holiday in the south of France and we’re going to have a quiet time,” he said, adding that he may have to pay more attention not to over-exert himself in future, but would not give up jogging.

“I’m a human being. I had a bout of fatigue. Was it due to dehydration, heat, tiredness? I don’t know,” he said. “I like sport a lot, the doctors say it’s necessary that I be able to continue, but in a reasonable manner.

“I’ve always paid attention to what I eat and I’m going to keep that up. I just need to rest.”

Sarkozy will spend three weeks on the Cote d’Azur in the family villa of his wife, the daughter of an Italian industrial dynasty, and formerly one of the world’s top fashion models.