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From pinworms to poor diet: What Indonesian elite athletes have to deal with
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Lalu Muhammad Zohri of Indonesia celebrates his victory in the 2018 IAAF World Under-20 Championships men's 100 meters dash in Tampere, Finland on July 11, 2018. (REUTERS/Lehtikuva/Kalle Parkkinen)
W
ho would have thought that rising Indonesian sprinter Lalu Muhammad Zohri, the fastest man in Southeast Asia, suffers from pinworms?
The infection was revealed by Indonesian Athletics Association (PASI) chief Bob Hasan.
In an exclusive interview with The Jakarta Post early this month, Bob said the association had learned about Zohri’s condition after the sprinter had taken a routine medical examination recently.
“We have doctors and nutritionists to check on the athletes. We’ve found some problems. Zohri, for example, our world champ, has had pinworms.”
“It happened because he did not wear shoes while he was back in his hometown and rarely washes his hands before eating,” said the prominent businessman.
After the examination, Zohri said he realized that some of his old habits, including letting his nails grow long, might also have caused the infection.
“If I eat vitamins or proteins while recovering from injury, the body doesn’t absorb them, as the worms eat them first,” the West Nusa Tenggara-born told the Post.
