Two soldiers from the Élysée Palace honor guard fainted just a few steps away from Emmanuel Macron during the official reception of Slovak President Peter Pellegrini in Paris. Both were escorted away from the ceremonial area, while the reasons for their collapse and their health condition have not yet been disclosed.
Footage recorded by Slovak television shows the first guard beginning to stagger, dropping his sword and collapsing to the ground. Macron and other attendees immediately moved toward him. After a brief interruption, the French president continued with the protocol proceedings and greeted Peter Pellegrini at the entrance to the palace.
A short while later, a second soldier also fell out of frame. The sound of his dropped sword can be heard in the recording, while Macron’s reaction is also partially visible. “But what the hell is going on?”, an unidentified man exclaims, his voice heard in the video cited by Le Parisien.
Condition of the Guards Remains Unknown
Élysée Palace staff assisted and escorted the two guards away from the official reception area. At the time of publication, there had been no official statement on their medical condition or on what caused them to lose their balance.
Following the incident, the meeting between Macron and Pellegrini continued as planned. The Slovak president was in France for official talks, during which the two heads of state discussed bilateral and international issues.
Sources: leparisien.fr, ladepeche.fr