Michael Schumacher’s injury, family life and why we’ve not seen him in 11 years
Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher has allegedly been seen in public for the first time in 11 years as he attended his daughter’s wedding.
The 55-year-old’s life has been shrouded in secrecy after he suffered a life-changing brain injury in a ski accident in 2013.
Prior to the accident, he was widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers in the history of the sport, and is a seven-time World Champion.
But this Saturday saw him attend his daughter Gina-Marie’s wedding at the family’s secluded four-acre Mallorca villa worth around £27 million.
His reported reappearance has meant many are wondering what happened to the sportsman, and why he hasn’t been seen for more than a decade.
What happened to Michael Schumacher?
The German national suffered a severe brain injury after he hit his head against a rock at the French resort of Meribel in December 2013 while skiing with then 14-year-old son Mick.
They were descending the Combe de Saulire below the dent de Burgin, and despite being an experienced skier and wearing a helmet, Michael fell and hit his head.
He was crossing an off-piste area behind the slope as he went to help another skier, but he hit one of the exposed rocks and launched through the area before colliding with another rock 10 metres away and hitting the right side of his head.
The impact was so strong his helmet was cracked in two, and medics said he would have likely died if he was not wearing the headgear.
He underwent two operations and was placed in a medically induced coma.
By March 2014 doctors saw small but encouraging signs his condition was improving, and in early April 2014 he was showing moments of consciousness.
By June he was withdrawn from the coma, and left the French Grenoble Hospital for the Lausanne University Hospital in Switzerland. In September he was brought back home to continue his recovery.
What do we know about his condition now?
Since 2014, Schumacher has received medical treatment at his home in Lake Geneva, Switzerland.
The extent of his injuries has never been revealed, but it marked an end to his public life.
In November 2014 it was reported he was ‘paralysed and in a wheelchair’ and was unable to speak.
But the following year Schumacher’s manager Sabine Kehm said his condition was slowly improving.
In July 2019 former Ferrari manager Jean Todt said he was making ‘good progress’ but ‘struggles to communicate’.
Only three close family members and a team of medics are said to have access to him.
In a 2021 Netflix documentary, Mr Schumacher’s wife Corinna said: ‘We live together at home. We do therapy. We do everything we can to make Michael better and to make sure he’s comfortable, and to simply make him feel our family, our bond.
‘We’re trying to carry on as a family, the way Michael liked it and still does. And we are getting on with our lives.
‘”Private is private,” as he always said. It’s very important to me that he can continue to enjoy his private life as much as possible. Michael always protected us, and now we are protecting Michael.’
This meant he has become estranged from other family members, including his brother and fellow F1 driver Ralf Schumacher.
He told German magazine Bunte: ‘If someone in the family is looking for my advice, I’m there. They go their own way.’
Who is Michael Schumacher’s wife?
Corinna Schumacher is a former office clerk and now German champion equestrian.
The pair married in 1995 the same year Michael won his second championship.
In 2010 she became the European champion in Western-style horse riding, and joked her husband was the ‘hired help’ as he mucked out stables and drove the truck on her ranch.
In an interview with Germany’s She’s Magazine, Corinna said her husband – who gave her a ranch in Givrins for their 10th wedding anniversary – was the reason she developed her passion for horses.
She said: ‘I don’t forget who I have to thank for this. That would be my husband Michael.
‘When I was 30 and I dreamt of having a horse, he flew me down to Dubai in order to look at an Arabian horse.’
She has been put under pressure for being ‘secretive’ about her husband’s health, with one of ex-managers demanding the family share the truth.
Willie Weber, 80, told Italian sports paper La Gazetta dello Sport: ‘I tried hundreds of times to contact Corinna and she didn’t answer.
‘I called the next day and no one answered. I didn’t expect behaviour like that and I’m still angry about it.
‘They kept me out, telling me it’s too early, well now it’s too late. It’s been nine years. Maybe they should just say it the way it is.‘
Who are their children?
The couple have two children, Gina-Maria born in 1997 and son Mick born in 1999.
Gina, 27, is a gold medalist in the Reining European Championship in Givrins.
She has revealed the advice her father gave to her when she started horse riding.
He told her: ‘When you drive a car, you can stick it in the garage afterwards.
‘But a horse needs to be looked after all the time, even on Sundays.’
She married Iain Bethke, with guests asked to leave their mobile phones at the door.
Mick, 25, entered Formula 1 in 2021 with the Haas Team
and signed with Mercedes as Lewis Hamilton’s back up driver in 2022.
He is currently competing in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Alpine.
In the Netflix documentary Mick said about his dad: ‘I think dad and me, we would understand each other now in a different way. Simply because we speak a similar language, the language of motorsport.’
In March 2017 he described his dad as his ‘idol and role model’.
This weekend he proposed to long-term girlfriend Laila Hasanovic, with the lingerie model posting a picture of a ring on her finger.
Who is his brother?
Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher is the younger brother of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher.
During his career, the 49-year-old had six Grand Prix wins and retired in 2007.
In July he announced he was gay uploading a photo to Instagram of himself with his arms around his partner Etienne as they both looked out towards the sunset.
He accompanied the photo with the message: ‘The most beautiful thing in life is when you have the right partner by your side with whom you can share everything.’
He was previously married to Cora for 14 years before their divorce in 2015. Together, they had a son David, 22, who is now a racing driver.
Last year, Ralf revealed he was no longer in touch with his brother and wife, but said he is always there to offer support.
‘When I see his children Gina-Maria and Mick, my heart smiles,’ Ralf told German magazine Bunte.
‘If someone in the family is looking for my advice, I’m there. They go their own way.’
Yet despite the somewhat frosty relationship between Ralf and Corinna, it is believed his decision to come out as gay followed a split from ex-wife Cora has helped mend bridges within the family.
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