Former Formula 1 world champion Keke Rosberg has opened up about the struggles with his deteriorating health due to long Covid. The 1982 F1 champion revealed ongoing battles with the condition.

That term refers to individuals who endure persistent negative effects well after contracting COVID-19. Rosberg astonishingly never sustained a bone fracture throughout his racing career, but in an interview with Finnish publication Apu, the 76-year-old detailed how the pandemic has impacted him physically.

"The post-corona period was a bit confusing as to whether this was caused by isolation, or whether there was some kind of post-corona disease when there was a lack of energy," he explained. "Understanding of this Long Covid is still at zero level. There are a huge number of people who suffer badly from it."

The racing icon, residing in Monaco near his son Nico, the 2016 F1 champion, also disclosed that he has undergone specialised treatment for his eye issues recently.

Rosberg admits that the twin challenges of ageing and the residual effects of his Covid-19 infection during the global outbreak have considerably narrowed his scope of activities. He lamented: "I used to have a list of things that still need to be done. I still have one now, but it's a list of things that can't be done anymore."

Rosberg made his F1 debut only in 1978 at the ripe age of 29, starting with smaller teams such as Theodore, ATS and Wolf. Then he joined Fittipaldi Automotive, an outfit managed by the Fittipaldi brothers Emerson, a two-time F1 champion, and Wilson, but failed to find competitiveness there.

However, Rosberg's career-defining opportunity came in 1982, when he took over from the erstwhile 1980 champion Alan Jones at Williams and, remarkably, secured the championship title in his inaugural season with the team - despite clinching just a single race win all year.

The zenith of his racing career was undeniably this championship win. Yet, he claims, witnessing his son Nico triumphing in the 2016 title after a fierce and acrimonious contest with Mercedes colleague Lewis Hamilton was even more significant for him.

He recounted: "The biggest thing was definitely Nico's championship. For me, that championship was just one milestone. For Nico, it wasn't like that. It was an important event. It was already a pretty big event in terms of family history. My championship in the family was mostly of interest to my father and mother."

Keke Rosberg was as surprised as anyone when his son, Nico Rosberg, announced his retirement just days after defeating Lewis Hamilton to secure the championship. Keke revealed: "He didn't say anything. Nico sent a text to his mother and said to tell his father later. It felt like a big fist to the diaphragm. Nico knew that if he started discussing it with me, then of course his father's opinion might be quite weighty, which he didn't want to listen to. That decision was difficult enough anyway."