Michael Schumacher health update after family friend 'fears worst' for F1 legend
A family friend of Michael Schumacher says the racing world is ready to see him once again.
Known as one of the greatest Formula 1 drivers of all time, Schumacher has been kept away from the limelight entirely after a devastating skiing accident in 2013 left him with a catastrophic head injury.
13 years on from the accident, the Schumacher family keep the exact nature of the 57-year-old's condition tightly under wraps, with very little known about the former champion's health or exact location.
Friends and those previously close to Schumacher have, however, shared small insights into his current life, with former driver Christian Danner saying that he wished to see the German star once again.
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"However Michael looks, or under whatever conditions he's alive – I don't know – I want to see him again," Danner said in a recent interview with OLBG.
Danner went on to acknowledge that while Schumacher's absence from public life suggested that he wasn't well, he believed that Formula 1 was 'ready to see him again'.
"The fact that he's not appearing anywhere indicates that he's probably not very well. But Formula 1's prepared for that. Formula 1's prepared for everything," he said.
"He's one of the heroes in the history of Formula 1, so if he would be happy and fit enough to come back, no matter the circumstances, in whatever condition, I think Formula 1 can cope with it easily."
Danner continued: "There are heroes in any kind of sport that have had a problem and have kind of fallen. But once they're alive, I think it does everyone a lot of good (to see them again).
"For me personally, it would be absolutely smashing to see him. I think that feeling is around for virtually everybody in Formula 1."
Danner, who currently works as a pundit for the sport, added that he was in regular contact with Schumacher's wife Corinna, but said she has not revealed where the family are currently living.
"There are all these rumours he's in Majorca, and they've put him in an estate there, and so forth," he said.
"When I'm speaking to Corinna, she's not mentioning it. When I'm speaking to other people who could know, they don't tell me."
When it comes to access to Schumacher, the family have restricted visitors to close members of the family as well as 'a few trusted people' such as Jean Todt and Luca Badoer.
For those not in the most trusted circle, rare updates come via Corinna.
Danner's comments come in direct contrast to a statement made by Richard Hopkins, who previously told SPORTbible he didn't think the public would ever see Schumacher again.
"I don't think we'll see Michael again. I'm slightly uncomfortable talking about his condition because of how secretive, for the right reasons, the family wants to keep it," he said.
"So I can make a remark, have an opinion, but I'm not in that inner circle. I'm not Jean Todt, I'm not Ross Brawn, I'm not Gerhard Berger, who visit Michael. I'm a long way from that."
When asked about the family's decision to keep Schumacher's condition strictly private, he added: "That's the way the family wants it to be. I think that's fair and respectful towards the family. Even if I did know, the family would be disappointed if I shared anyway."
Topics: Sport, Michael Schumacher, Health
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