SYDNEY, Australia – Australian rock star-turned-lawmaker Peter Garrett was hospitalized after collapsing on a Sydney beach following a morning swim, authorities said. Garrett, former lead singer of Midnight Oil, was taken by ambulance to Prince of Wales Hospital after collapsing on Maroubra beach in southern Sydney early Saturday.
He was discharged from the hospital Saturday evening, saying he would undergo further tests to determine why he had collapsed.
“It’s good to be back on my feet again,” he told reporters outside the hospital. “(There are) no obvious causes as to why this happened and we’ll get some more tests and checks done next week.”
Lifeguards came to Garrett’s aid when he collapsed as he waded from the water where he had been body surfing.
Garrett’s political adviser Simon Balderstone said Garrett had no history of medical problems.
“He’s very fit and healthy and it’s probably fair to say he’s a lot fitter and healthier than your average 51-year-old Australian male,” he told Sky News television.
The rock star and committed environmentalist was elected in October as a lawmaker with the opposition Labor Party.
