Nicolas Sarkozy Hospitalized After Collapse

In a statement, Nicolas Sarkozy's office added:

"When he was jogging in the park of the Chateau of Versailles, the president was taken ill. This episode, which happened after 45 minutes of intensive physical exercise, was not accompanied by a loss of consciousness."

It was only three weeks ago when the results of Sarkozy's latest annual health check-up were released, describing the results of recent blood and heart tests as "normal."

While the obvious suspicion would center on some sort of cardiovascular problem, television and radio quoted a source "close to Sarkozy" as saying that he had suffered from an "vagal problem." The vagus nerve can lower the blood pressure and heart rate.