2024-08-27 08:10:29
Corinna and Michael Schumacher have been a couple for more than 30 years. But before their relationship, there was another man in her life – and he is no stranger.
The sparks flew in the early 1990s. Corinna and Michael Schumacher met, fell in love and officially became a couple in 1992. In August 1995, they got married in Kerpen, but almost had to be called off. There was too much demand at the time.
Michael Schumacher and Corinna Betsch (as she was called at the time) actually wanted to get married secretly and quietly in the community center in Kerpen-Manheim. But the press and fans got wind of it. The local media hype grew ever larger.
The mayor pulled the ripcord and called off the wedding. But in the early evening, around 5.30 p.m., it happened: Corinna and Michael Schumacher, both 26 years old at the time, swore eternal loyalty to each other.
Next year, the two will celebrate their pearl wedding anniversary. Even after 30 years, they are considered the dream couple in Formula 1. But what many fans don’t know is that before Michael Schumacher, there was another racing driver in Corinna Betsch’s life.
At the end of the 1980s, she was in a relationship with Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Michael Schumacher’s rival. Both moved up to Formula 3 in 1989. Frentzen was 22 years old at the time, Schumacher two years younger. At that time, the racing driver was with Corinna.
The three of them are said to have spent a lot of time together at the time, as his ex-manager Willi Weber once wrote in his biography “Benzin am Limit”: “As a trio, they had eaten pizza in the past, danced to Marianne Rosenberg’s, celebrated birthdays, hung out at the go-kart track, and philosophized about what it would be like to drive in Formula 1.”
Then Heinz-Harald Frentzen had to go to Japan because there was no cockpit for him in Germany. Michael Schumacher sensed his chance. There was no bad blood between the rivals. In 2000, Frentzen once said: “I noticed early on that he actually only had eyes for Corinna. […] Today I know that they fit together perfectly.”
Corinna and Michael Schumacher are still a couple. And Heinz-Harald Frentzen also found new love after their separation. The former Formula 1 star married his girlfriend Tanja in 1999. He has three children with her – daughters Lea, Sarah and Fenja. The 57-year-old ended his career in 2003. Today Heinz-Harald Frentzen leads a secluded life.
Corinna and Michael Schumacher have two children. Daughter Gina was born in 1997. She is a successful western rider. Son Mick, who was born two years later, followed in his father’s footsteps.