What is known about the former pilot’s health after a skiing accident

German authorities announced this week that they had arrested two men, a father and son, who tried to extort “millions” of euros from Michael Schumacher’s family so that they would not publish “private photographs” of the decision. According to the suspects, the images came after the skiing accident of the Formula 1 legend.

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Schumacher had just retired from the Formula 1 track, ending one of the most successful careers in the history of the sport, when he suffered an accident that changed his life forever. On the morning of December 29, 2013, the 44-year-old former pilot was skiing in the French Alps with his family, but a rock tragically crossed his path.

Schumacher had skill and experience on skis. I knew the track well at the resort of Meribel in Les Allues. He had a house in the region, where he spent New Year’s Eve with his wife and children and celebrated his birthday on January 3.

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At the time of the accident, the seven-time Formula 1 1 champion was skiing between two marked slopes. He entered the restricted area to help another skier who had fallen there. The former Ferrari driver’s speed on the snow was not beyond his abilities, but there were plenty of rocks on display. Schumacher’s ski hit a rock, and he was thrown ten meters away. As he fell, he hit his head on another rock. His helmet was broken in two pieces.

Taken by helicopter to Grenoble Hospital, in the Alps, the German underwent two operations and was placed in an induced coma, due to the severity of the trauma to his skull. In the opinion of local doctors, Schumacher may have died from the force of the impact on the rock. His condition was critical and, from the first news of the situation, it was clear that he might not survive.

Michael Schumacher during Wales in Brazil in 1992 — Photo: Julio Cesar Guimarães/ Agência O GLOBO

In April 2014, doctors began to bring the former pilot out of a medically induced coma, and he showed signs of consciousness. In June, Schumacher was transferred to Hospital Lausanne, Switzerland, and, about three months later, he was taken to his family’s residence. According to his manager, the German situation was still quite serious, but he was showing progress.

The Schumacher Mansion in Gland, Switzerland was also equipped with the medical equipment necessary for the former athlete’s recovery. According to information at the time, millions of dollars were invested to install devices and hire health professionals.

The German family, who were already asking the public to respect his privacy at a time of great suffering, began from then on not to reveal anything about the condition of the former pilot. His wife, Corinna, had put up with unethical harassment from the media when her husband was in hospital in Grenoble. Whenever she entered or left the hospital, she was constantly bombarded with cameras and questions. At home, Corinna put an end to everything.

Since then, very little information about the situation of the seven-time champion has been circulated in the newspapers. No images of him have been released in the last ten years. At the end of 2014, former driver Philippe Streiff, a personal friend of the German, told the French radio “Europe 1”, after a visit, that Schumacher had shown “some improvement” since leaving the t -hospital, but he was still paralyzed, in a wheelchair, and dealt with many memory and speech problems.

Michael Schumacher skiing in 2004 – Photo: AFP/Vincenzo Pinto

In 2019, Frenchman Jean Todt, former Ferrari manager and then president of the International Automobile Federation, reiterated that the seven-time world champion continued to improve slowly, but was still struggling to communicate. According to Todt, Schumacher was already able to watch the races on TV. In the same year, in September, the European press reported that the Germans received an innovative stem cell-based therapy at the Georges-Pompidou Hospital in Paris.

The visit to the French capital was the last concrete news about the track hero’s situation. But, last week, the German newspaper “Sport Bild” gave more information about the former athlete. According to the publication, Schumacher has accepted to travel in a Mercedes sports car. The purpose of this is to stimulate his brain through engine sounds, something very familiar to someone who started driving go-karts at the age of 4.

Even after so much time, Schumacher’s relatives continue to be harassed by the press. In March 2023, a German magazine published an alleged interview with the former pilot that would be the first since the accident. It was later clarified that the answers were created using artificial intelligence. In other words, it was a hoax. The family responded with a warning that they would sue the magazine, whose responsible editor was terminated amid criticism.