Konstantinos Karitsas will miss the match between his German football team, Borussia Dortmund, and its guest, Paderborn, but he is not expected to be absent for a long time.
The 18-year-old Greek player made a strong start with Dortmund since moving to the team during the transfer period from Genk, but he was forced to leave the field in the first half of Dortmund's 3-2 win over Villarreal in the Champions League, on Tuesday, due to circulatory problems.
Karitsas was taken to the hospital on a stretcher.
Sports director Uli Bock provided an update on the player's condition on Thursday.
He told reporters: “It is clear that we put the health of the person and the player first, and therefore he will not be with us at the end of the week.”
He added: “His condition is good under these circumstances.” Additional examinations are still underway, and we want to find out the truth about what happened.”
But Karitsas is not expected to be out of action for long.
Borussia Dortmund coach Niko Kovac said: “We are optimistic about his condition, and we hope that he will return to us again in the near future.”
The other Greek striker who recently joined Dortmund, Yiannis Konstantelias, suffered a rupture in the cruciate ligament of the knee during his first appearance with the team in the German League last month, and will be absent from the field for several months.
In rare positive news on the team roster for Dortmund, the German runner-up last season, defenders Niko Schlotterbeck and Ramy Bensebaini returned to group training on Wednesday after recovering from injury.
Formula 1 car racing returns to Madrid this weekend, with organizers promoting the new track as a “track designed for show,” but drivers are preparing for the possibility of collisions.
Carlos Sainz, the Williams driver born in the Spanish capital, said: “This will be one of the biggest challenges in Formula 1 recently,” and he expects the safety car to enter and pit stops in the race.
The length of the track is 5,416 kilometers, includes 22 turns, and was built around the trade fair grounds in Madrid, 16 kilometers from the city center. However, it is classified as a street track.
Organizers expect 350,000 spectators to attend over the course of the Grand Prix weekend.
“La Monumental” is the centerpiece of the new track, which is a 550-meter long curve that is passed at maximum speed.
Sainz said after driving a GT car on the track: “You enter the corner at full speed... and then suddenly the vision in front of you becomes obscured, and all you can see is the sky.”
The track as a whole is expected to represent a real test for drivers. Stefano Domenicali, CEO of Formula 1, who seeks to expand the spread of the sport to more places, said: “If a driver makes a mistake, he must realize that the price will be high.”
Recent tests for the Formula 3 Championship witnessed 19 red flag cases, with 3 cars completely destroyed and 6 cases sustaining damage to the suspension system. Williams team principal James Falls described the track as a "car killer."
The poor level of grip on the track does not make the task any easier. This season's cars have also become more difficult to predict in terms of speed and acceleration. Due to the power of the batteries, which also increases the risk of accidents.
The first laps on the track will be completely new for the teams during the two free practice sessions tomorrow (Friday), with the exception of Ferrari. The Italian team held a dedicated photography day at the Madring track last July, when it was still under construction, which gave Lewis Hamilton and his colleague Charles Leclerc the opportunity to get to know it.
Hamilton, who is in third place, needs any help possible, as he is currently 76 points away from Kimi Antonelli, the Mercedes driver and world championship leader.
There are two different teams supporting the track, which are the two biggest football clubs in the city. Real Madrid's training center is located not far from the track, and the club is one of the local sponsors of the event, along with Atletico Madrid.
Spanish media estimated the total cost of constructing the Madring track at approximately 141.3 million euros ($164 million). According to a study conducted by the auditing company PwC, the new Spanish Grand Prix is expected to generate 467 million euros and contribute to creating 8,850 job opportunities.
But not all Madrid residents are happy with the arrival of Formula 1 to their city, as infrastructure work continues, including breaking, painting and plastering, until the last moments.
German Florian Leibovitz was selected for his country's squad to participate in the World Road Cycling Championships, just two months after he broke his collarbone during the International Tour de France.
Leibovitz, who finished third in last year's edition of the Tour de France, returned to competitions only yesterday, Wednesday, by participating in a one-day race held in Tuscany, Italy.
Leibovitz (25 years old) will lead the German team consisting of 6 riders in the road race scheduled in Montreal on September 27, according to what the German Cycling Federation announced today, Thursday.
