Sarkozy ready for quiet time

2009-07-31 21:03

France - French President Nicolas Sarkozy began a Riviera vacation on Friday, arriving with his wife Carla Bruni in Cap Negre five days after he collapsed while jogging and was rushed to hospital.

Sarkozy has insisted he is in good health but admits doctors have told him he needs rest following the dizzy spell he suffered while on a routine Sunday morning jog in a park west of Paris.

The 54-year-old leader was flown by helicopter to hospital and after undergoing an extensive battery of tests was given a clean bill of health.

So on Friday, Sarkozy and Carla flew to a nearby airport and were taken by car to a villa on the Mediterranean owned by the first lady's family, which built a fortune in manufacturing in Italy.

The couple smiled and waved to dozens of wellwishers who lined the streets of Cap Negre, where Sarkozy will spend three weeks.

Last year, the president had interrupted his holiday several times, travelling to Moscow to broker an end to the Russian-Georgian war and to Beijing to attend the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.

"We are going to go south on vacation with Carla and the children and spend some quiet time," he said on Wednesday in his first public comments since his hospital stay.

An avid runner who also cycles, Sarkozy has sought to project an image of a healthy, energetic leader, rising to the demands of a packed schedule, foreign travel and family life.

Dubbed the "hyper-president" by the French media, Sarkozy has however acknowledged that his life has been hectic over the past years.

The defence ministry has set up a no-fly zone over Cap Negre until August 31.

- AFP