Governor Chris Christie, who once famously called himself "the healthiest fat guy you've ever seen", disclosed on Tuesday he had secretly undergone weight-loss surgery, a major new step by the potential Republican presidential contender to address both his health and a political vulnerability.

The stakes are high for Christie, with medical professionals and campaign strategists alike suggesting there is no more serious barrier to his personal well-being and national ambitions than his weight.

It's not about politics, he said. It's about turning 50 and wanting to be around as his children grow up.

"This is a hell of a lot more important to me than running for president," Christie, a father of four, said at a news conference in Newark. "This is about my family's future."

After making many attempts to shed pounds over the years, he said the surgery was "an opportunity to try something different".

A gastric band, placed around the stomach, limits the quantity of food that a person can eat.

The governor said he hadn't discussed the procedure for three months after his Feb 16 operation because it was "nobody else's business".

The former prosecutor rose to national prominence during Hurricane Sandy last year, which struck New Jersey hard.

His weight and possible related health issues, however, would likely be an immediate issue if he made a run for the White House, and have already become targets in US news.

Last December, Christie became exasperated, saying it was "ridiculous" to think his weight would make him a poor president.

"That's ridiculous. I mean, that's ridiculous. People watched me for the last number of weeks in Hurricane Sandy doing 18-hour days, so I don't really think that would be a problem," he said during an interview with ABC's Barbara Walters.

He said he had tried to slim down. "If I could figure that out, I would fix it," he said. "I've had more diets and lost and gained back more weight in my life than I could count."

Christie, elected to his first term as governor in 2009, declined to attempt a presidential bid in October 2011.

But he was one of the top speakers at the Republican convention last year, and he is already perceived as a strong contender for Republicans in 2016, especially after his popularity soared from his handling of Hurricane Sandy.

AP-AFP

(China Daily 05/09/2013 page10)