Michael Schumacher’s former boss gives rare update on F1 legend’s health
Michael Schumacher’s former boss has offered a rare peek into the racer’s life12 years after a skiing accident resulted in brain injury.
The seven-time Formula 1 world champion fell and struck his head on a rock on an unkempt snowfield at Meribel, a French Alpine resort, in 2013.
Schumacher, 56, has been away from the public eye since, with his family rarely providing health updates.
But his ex-manager at Benetton, Flavio Briatore, says he ‘talks often’ with Schumacher’s wife, champion equestrian Corinna.
Briatore told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera: ‘If I close my eyes, I see him smiling after a victory.
‘I prefer to remember him like that rather than him just lying on a bed.’
Only a few details about Schumacher’s condition have been revealed over the years by those in his inner circle.
His ex-wife Elisabetta Gregoraci said: ‘Michael doesn’t speak, he communicates with his eyes.
‘Only three people can visit him and I know who they are. They moved to Spain and his wife has set up a hospital in that house.
While the former Ferrari boss, Jean Todt, has also said that Schumacher is no longer who he ‘used to be’.
He told the French publication L’Équipe in 2023: ‘Michael is here, so I don’t miss him. [But he] is simply not the Michael he used to be. He is different and is wonderfully guided by his wife and children, who protect him.
‘His life is different now and I have the privilege of sharing moments with him.’
Schumacher, who was placed into a medically induced coma after the accident, reportedly had his first public appearance in October.
Schumacher’s daughter Gina-Marie, 27, wed Iain Bethke at the family’s luxury four-acre Mallorca villa in a closely-guarded ceremony.
But Schumacher was among those celebrating the couple and is said to have spoken with friends and family members.
The racer is estranged from his extended family members, including his brother and fellow F1 driver Ralf.
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