Swimmer Anita Alvarez Shares a Health Update After Fainting in Pool
Anita Alvarez is reflecting on her recent health scares after fainting in the water during her routine at the FINA World Aquatic Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
The 25-year-old Olympic artistic swimmer noted that her “health is good” and is feeling “much better” since losing consciousness in the pool while competing in the women solo free final on June 22.
“I took a decent break after Tokyo and shortly after coming back fractured some bones and had foot surgery, shortly after coming back from that which was also shortly before leaving for Worlds, I got COVID. And well we all know what happened next,” Alvarez wrote on Instagram.
“While it seems like the universe may have been against me all year, I’m a firm believer in things happening for a reason and learning from every situation with an open mind & heart,” she continued, adding that she will take the challenges she’s dealt and is dealing with “to continue creating my own path of life.”
She noted that while people will “criticize and disagree” with her views, she appreciates all the opinions. “But I am learning as I go; Aware of past mistakes but always focused on how I can be better going forward.”
After thinking long and hard about what she wanted to share with her followers, she gave a brief health update.
“With the information we have, my health is good and I am feeling much better today and that is most important,” Alvarez — who competed in the 2016 and 2020 Olympics — explained. “For everyone concerned that this just happens regularly and I am just pushing it aside because I don’t take my health seriously is mistaken and I hope you can understand my position and respect my privacy at the same time.”
The athlete noted that she is a person who values privacy and seeing “this blast in the media of something so personal” has been “a bit unsettling.”
“I have seen countless doctors and had extensive tests over the years,” she stated. “And I will continue to further investigate until I have an answer because this right here is my passion, it’s what I live for, and I am still… only.getting.started.”
During her solo routine last week, Alvarez began to drift to the bottom of the pool. Her coach, Andrea Fuentes, jumped into the water to save her. Alvarez was underwater for nearly two minutes before Fuentes rescued her.
“As soon as she was going down immediately I (knew) that something was wrong,” Fuentes told TODAY’s Miguel Almaguer.
Recalling the incident, Alvarez said that “everything went black. It all happened really fast.”
“I remember going down and just being like, kind of like, ‘Uh oh, I don’t feel too great,’” the swimmer said. “That’s literally the last thing I remember, actually.”
“I think right away I knew I would be OK,” Alvarez said. “I mean, as soon as I started breathing and was awake and everything.”
Fuentes previously shared on her Instagram that medical examiners determined that Alvarez’s vitals, including heart rate, oxygen, and blood pressure, were all in good shape.
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