The team USA swimmer who collapsed during the World Championships provides a health update
Anita Alvarez, an Olympian swimmer, says she is doing well after fainting underwater during the 2022 World Aquatics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
“Thank you all,” she said on her Instagram Story on June 23. “Please know that I am fine and healthy!” I appreciate all of the messages of encouragement, and I hope everyone understands that my team and I still have two days of competition to focus on here in Budapest. “
On the other hand, Alvarez says her chances of swimming in the remaining competition are still up in the air, writing, “Whether that’s in the water for me or on the sidelines will be determined by myself and expert medical staff, but either way, @artswimusa and I have a job to finish and I hope everyone can understand that.”
Anita was photographed floating toward the bottom of the pool, seemingly unconscious, after completing her solo free routine on June 22. Andrea Fuentes, a synchronized swimmer who had won four Olympic medals for Spain, bravely jumped into the pool and was photographed pulling the swimmer to the surface.
The Olympic Games website says that the coach and an unnamed man pulled Alvarez to the edge of the pool, where she got medical care and was then taken away on a stretcher.
Following the incident, Fuentes issued a statement saying that Alvarez was fine and resting.
“We forget that this happens in other high-endurance sports,” she explained. “Marathon, cycling, cross country… we’ve all seen images of athletes who don’t make it to the finish line and others who assist them in getting there. Our sport is similar to others in that we push through limits and sometimes find them in a pool. “