Leon Tsoukernik, the highstakes player and former King’s Casino owner, has recovered incredibly quickly from his recent life-threatening coma following a suspected drug overdose. “I’m absolutely fine, I feel fantastic,” he told Czech media this week.
The 51-year-old Czech, a larger-than-life character known for his “Loose Leon” tag as a nosebleed-stakes PLO player, was rushed to hospital just two weeks ago. Tsoukernik was suspected to have been administered an overdose of Propofol, the drug that ended pop star Michael Jackson’s life.
Life-threatening collapse
Flown to hospital in a coma by emergency helicopter, Tsoukernik surprised medical staff by emerging from his life-threatening condition just a few days later.
A neurologist at Na Homolce hospital in Prague stated at the time:
“There was a risk that Tsoukernik would not be able to wake up, but we succeeded. He is far from done, and it may happen that he will never be the same again.
“The patient may not be able to perceive, speak, or move. It is a matter of how much his brain is damaged. An MRI scan of the brain can tell us how the situation will develop.”
The poker community – and everyone else connected to the remarkable businessman’s world – still expected bad news rather than good, given the initial severity of the reports of his collapse.
“A Second Life”
Those fears appear to have been unwarranted, however, with Tsoukernik telling Forbes.cz this week: “I’m absolutely fine, I feel fantastic.”
In a FaceTime call he revealed: “I even had memories of things that I had forgotten a long time ago.”
Leon praised those who helped his recovery: “My undying gratitude goes to KARIM (Department of Anaesthesiology, Resuscitation and Intensive Care Medicine). Quality that I have never seen anywhere in the world.”
He added that the department, headed by Professor Jan Beneš at Charles University in Plzen, had offered him “a second life”.
“At the same time, I am grateful from the bottom of my heart to my wife Sandra, who spent days and nights by my bed. I believe it played a role,” he revealed.
What Really happened?
Although the founder of King’s Casino (which he sold last year for a reported €300-400million) has survived a most serious condition, he has still not commented on how the near-tragedy occurred.
When news of the suspected Propofol overdose was first revealed, police were said to be investigating its cause.
“We are investigating possible illegal behavior that may have occurred at an undetermined time in Chodová Planá,” police spokesperson Iva Vršecká stated.
“The police commissioner has initiated criminal proceedings on suspicion of committing the particularly serious crime of grievous bodily harm. All the circumstances of the case are the subject of further investigation,” Vršecká added.
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