A smiling French President Nicolas Sarkozy left a Paris military hospital on Monday after overnight tests gave him a clean bill of health despite his collapse while jogging the day before.
Sarkozy left the Val de Grace hospital hand in hand with his supermodel wife Carla Bruni Sarkozy, then shook the hands of medical staff and waved to journalists before getting into his official car and being driven off.
Earlier, Sarkozy's his chief of staff had said that he was "doing well" in hospital after collapsing during a weekend jog, as the ailing leader was urged to cut back on his gruelling schedule.
Sarkozy, 54, collapsed on Sunday while running at his weekend retreat near the Versailles palace west of Paris. He was taken to a military hospital in the capital by helicopter after the incident.
A presidential aide said the French leader - who assumed office in May 2007 -- was suffering from a "minor" problem related to his vagus nerve, which helps the body regulate the heart rate.
Sarkozy is "doing well," his chief of staff Claude Gueant said.
The French leader is scheduled to leave the Val de Grace hospital later on Monday.
"He's fine. He's hungry. He's complaining. Everything is going well," lawmaker and Sarkozy ally Patrick Balkany told RTL radio after talking to Gueant and first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy.
"Carla reassured us straight away... it's a passing thing. The President is going to have to take more care, work a little less hard and eat a little bit more," he added, blaming the incident on Sarkozy's recent efforts to lose weight.
"Recently the president has looked very honed - he looks more like a Tour de France rider than a president," he joked.
A condition known as vasovagal syncope can reduce the heart rate and blood pressure -- particularly if the victim is dehydrated. Patients can faint but normally make a complete recovery, medical experts said.
Sarkozy's office said there were no plans to cancel his visit on Tuesday to the Mont Saint Michel abbey in Normandy, and he was set to start his vacation at the end of the week.
"Clinical and complementary examinations testing neurological functions came back with normal results," including blood tests, an electroencephalogram (EEG) measuring electrical activity of the brain and an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan, the French presidency said in a statement.
It said it would give an update on his condition on Monday.
According to the Elysee, Sarkozy's doctor was with the running party and was able to attend to him immediately.
"The malaise, which did not involve a loss of consciousness, followed 45 minutes of intense exercise," it said.
A witness, speaking on condition of anonymity, said she saw a runner surrounded by bodyguards stumble and collapse in the grounds of La Lanterne.
Sarkozy, a fitness enthusiast, is often seen jogging or cycling with aides and bodyguards.
