French president waves to cameras as guard suddenly collapses

French President Emmanuel Macron this month drew backlash after a video showed him waving to the cameras while a Republican Guard near him collapsed.

The incident occurred on June 9^th as Macron was escorting Madagascar President Andry Rajoelinaup on the steps of Élysée Palace. Video footage shows a young Republican Guardsman suddenly collapsing at his post, at which point two men quickly moved him out of sight behind a pillar. Shortly after, an official planted himself in front of the collapsed guardsman to ostensibly block the sight from cameras as Macron smiled and waved to the cameras.

While French media blamed the guard’s collapse on the heat, social media netizens suggested it may be yet another injury from the COVID-19 vaccine that Macron zealously mandated for French citizens.

“French guard drops right in front of Emmanuel Macron… it’s become so prevalent since the vaccine rollout that they don’t even give you medical help… they just cart you away out of site,” commented one influencer.

Two days earlier, three British royal guardsmen suddenly collapsed during a rehearsal for King Charles’ birthday parade. One was escorted off the square while the other two were carried away on stretchers. 

Those collapses and others are blamed on the heat, regardless of season, severity or rarity.

In November, three participants in Spain’s Behobia-San Sebastián half-marathon collapsed from heart attacks while 33 others required hospitalization. 125 other runners required medical attention. 

In August two runners died and 74 were hospitalized during the Comrades Marathon in South Africa. At least one of the fatalities suffered a sudden heart attack. 

News media blamed the local weather, which was recorded as partly cloudy at 71.4 degrees Fahrenheit. 

The tragedy followed a similar one in May 2022 when sixteen people were taken to the hospital after running the Brooklyn Half Marathon, including four runners who collapsed and a 30-year-old runner who died of cardiac arrest. The media blamed the weather, which ranged from low 60s to high 70s with high humidity.