West Brom striker, Charlie Austin believes he has contracted coronavirus after he attended the Cheltenham Festival last week.
The 30-year-old English professional footballer is currently self-isolating at home after showing some of the symptoms of COVID-19.
He said that he has had no face-to-face contact with his own family since last Saturday after contacting the West Brom club doctor Kevin Conrod.
Austin also revealed that he believes he had the virus after his temperature soared to 39.7 degrees Celcius while also experiencing cold sweats.
Speaking to The Telegraph, he said: ‘I felt like someone had chucked a bucket of water over me. I was soaking.’
‘I felt like I was fit and healthy and I could handle it. A week later and I would say to anyone, even those in their 20s and 30s – “Don’t take it lightly – it’s serious”.
‘I get that people who haven’t got it are going about their lives. Last week, I was living my life. Not that I didn’t take coronavirus seriously. But this is extremely serious and we should take it that way.’
‘I felt like I was fit and healthy and I could handle it. A week later and I would say to anyone, even those in their 20s and 30s – “Don’t take it lightly – it’s serious”.
‘I get that people who haven’t got it are going about their lives. Last week, I was living my life. Not that I didn’t take coronavirus seriously. But this is extremely serious and we should take it that way.’
The Cheltenham Festival was one of the last sporting events to go ahead with more than 250,000 fans visiting the race course before all activities were suspended due to the coronavirus outbreak.
