According to reporting from Russian media outlet RT, the recent ailments afflicting Adbulmanap Nurmagomedov, the father of UFC lightweight champion Khabib, were the result of complications stemming from COVID-19.
News of health issues plaguing Nurmagomedov, 57, first surfaced out of Russia on April 25, when a longtime friend of Nurmagomedov’s, broadcaster Ramazan Rabanov, posted that the legendary mixed martial arts trainer was hospitalized on his Instagram.
Initial reports indicated that Nurmagomedov was suffering from pneumonia and flu, but that he had not tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), which has led to mass shutdowns of businesses and governments around the world following while becoming classified as a pandemic by the World Health Organization.
As reported by The Body Lock on April 25, when news of Nurmagomedov’s medical issues surfaced, pneumonia’s and the flu’s symptoms largely mirror that of the coronavirus, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
According to Yahoo! Sports, “Abdulmanap’s nephew Umar Nurmagomedov confirmed to RT on May 6 that Abdulmanap was initially hospitalized in April in his home of Dagestan with suspected pneumonia and had tested negative for COVID-19.”
In the days and weeks following Nurmagomedov’s hospitalization, new details emerged as his condition appeared to worsen.
Nurmagomedov was moved to a hospital in Moscow, where he reportedly suffered a heart attack on May 3, leaving him in a coma. A source told RT, “They didn’t treat him properly in Dagestan, and some complications arose. They flew him to Moscow, where he is now in a military hospital.”
Now, reports out of Russia indicate that Nurmagomedov’s health issues were, in fact, related to COVID-19.
RT stated that Nurmagomedov was diagnosed with the virus “upon arrival at the Moscow clinic he had been transferred to on a special flight from Dagestan.”
Citing a source, RT also alleges that “a number of Khabib camp members have also fallen ill with Covid-19-type symptoms in recent weeks.”
On Thursday, RT reported that Nurmagomedov was in “serious but stable” condition. According to Rabadanov on Thursday, “He regained consciousness today. He hasn’t yet spoken. Yesterday [Wednesday] he was in a coma after a heart operation.”
The UFC, bitter archrival Conor McGregor, and many other figures in the mixed martial arts community have sent messages of support to Nurmagomedov and his family, with the UFC including a segment wishing Nurmagomedov and his family well during the broadcast of its recent UFC Fight Night event headlined by Anthony Smith and Glover Teixeira.
