Friday, March 30, 2007

Argentine soccer hero Diego Maradona remained sedated in a clinic yesterday for treatment of alcoholism and excessive eating and smoking.

A day after Maradona was taken by ambulance to the Guemes Sanatorium in Buenos Aires, clinic director Hector Pezzella said the 47-year-old former star was under sedation to avoid problems with withdrawal from alcohol.

He said Maradona's life was not in danger and that he remained in stable condition and was improving.

"Alcoholism in Señor Maradona or in any other patient is not something to be taken lightly. One has to treat it," Pezzella declared at the door of the clinic, his words carried live on Argentine television.

"They are undertaking treatment specifically for addiction," he added. "At this moment, they are treating him for a problem of addiction to alcohol."

Maradona led Argentina to the 1986 World Cup championship and went on to become one of soccer's top players. In 2001, he was named by FIFA as one of the greatest players in soccer history, alongside Brazil's Pele.

Off the field, Maradona has battled cocaine addiction and obesity. In 2005, he underwent gastric bypass surgery in Colombia and soon after sported a thinner look.

Maradona's physician, Alfredo Cahe, said the soccer great was taken to the clinic late Wednesday for health problems brought on by overeating, drinking and "the quantity of cigars he smoked."

-- From News Services