Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel has suffered partial hearing loss after a member of the royal family fired the starting pistol for a running race next to his ear.
Princess Astrid, the younger sister of Belgium's King Philippe, fired the blank next to his left ear at a 20km race in Brussels on Sunday.
The prime minister had to postpone an appearance in parliament today to present a national investment plan to undergo tests, his office said.
Mr Michel was suffering from "partial deafness" and "tinnitus", or ringing in the ears, his spokesman Frederic Cauderlier told AFP, declining to give further details to "maintain his privacy".
Mr Michel underwent extensive medical tests yesterday and this morning in a bid to treat the problem "as soon as possible after the incident," Mr Cauderlier said.
He would resume his schedule later today, he added.
