US President Joe Biden is fine after stumbling while climbing steps to board a plane on Friday, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said.
She believes that high winds at the Joint Base Andrews near Washington may have been a factor.
It was very windy as the president was climbing the stairs, she said when asked about his stumbling. “He is doing 100 percent fine,” she added.
Jean-Pierre did not reply to the question when asked whether the president had been checked by a physician travelling on the plane.
Biden was boarding a flight to Atlanta, where he was to speak to the Asian-American community about a shooting incident this week, when he stumbled slightly, recovered, then stumbled again and briefly went down on one knee, according to video footage.
The president rubbed his left knee before getting back up, then completed the stairs at a slower pace. He stopped at the top of the stairs, turned around and offered a crisp salute.
In late November, Biden suffered a hairline fracture in his right foot while playing with one of his dogs.
Biden, 78, was the oldest person ever to assume the presidency when he entered the White House on Jan. 20.
