Play stupid games, win stupid prizes: Hana Horká, a folk singer hailing from the Czech Republic, died over the weekend after intentionally catching COVID-19.
Horká, who also performed in the popular Czech band Asonance, “preferred to catch the disease than get vaccinated,” her son told Prague Morning.
Her son, Jan Rek, said that both he and his father caught COVID-19 over Christmas. Rather than stay away from them, Horká intentionally exposed herself to the virus, with the hope that she would catch it and then qualify for a “recovery pass.” (In the Czech Republic, either proof of vaccination or a recent infection is required to access theaters, cinemas, bars, and cafes.)
Horká, who frequently shared anti-vaccine articles on social media, initially bragged about her recovery. “I survived… It was intense. So now there will be the theater, sauna, a concert… and an urgent trip to the sea,” she wrote on Instagram last Friday. “Life is here for me and for you too.”
However, just two days after that fateful post, Horká died due to coronavirus complications. “In about 10 minutes it was all over,” her son said. “She choked to death.”
Jan Rek told Prague Morning that he hopes his mother’s story will convince others to get vaccinated. “If you have living examples from real life, it’s more powerful than just graphs and numbers,” he said. “You can’t really sympathize with numbers.”
