German Alexander Zverev, number 2 in world tennis, revealed that he has suffered from diabetes since childhood and that he has created a foundation that bears his name to fight against this disease.
“August 6 is a very special day for my family and me. Today (Saturday), the Alexander Zverev Foundation was officially founded to help children suffering from type 1 diabetes and people to prevent possible type 2 diabetes by leading a healthy and active life,” the 25-year-old tennis player wrote. , On Instagram.
That same day, Zverev declared in an interview on RTL that he had decided to launch this foundation with his brother Mischa, based in Hamburg, his hometown, “to show the world that no limits should be set for this disease.”
The current Olympic champion, diagnosed with diabetes at the age of three and a half, explained this Monday in a long interview with L’Equipe how he is dealing with this condition.
“I have the reader in my racket bag. The ATP authorizes me to use it (…) I control myself at each change of sides. I don’t have an insulin pump, I inject myself. I always have my insulin pen with me, ”he confessed to the French sports daily.
Sascha, who seriously injured his right ankle in the semifinals at Roland Garros against Spaniard Rafael Nada on June 4, told RTL that it is still early to decide whether he will play the US Open, which will start on August 29. .
“It’s still too early for that,” said the tennis player, who has just returned to training in Monte Carlo, where he lives. In addition, he stressed that he wants to be one hundred percent in the Davis Cup in mid-September.
Zverev, who posted a video on Instagram on Sunday of himself playing, says he is happy to be back in training. “Very happy” and “surprised, firstly by the way I played and not having felt any pain”, he remarked.