Michael Schumacher’s state of health remains an unknown twelve years after his tragic skiing accident in the French Alps.
On 29 December 2013, the motorsport world was left in shock by news coming from the Alpine resort of Méribel, in France. There, seven-time Formula 1 world champion Michael Schumacher suffered a skiing accident and struck his head on a rock.
The German’s medical condition was unclear from the very beginning, even though information gradually emerged. It became known that the helmet he was wearing had shattered on impact and that he had been placed in a medically induced coma to protect him from potential brain damage. The family later announced that he had been transferred to a hospital in Lausanne, Switzerland.
From that moment on, details of his recovery were kept strictly private. It later emerged that only in September 2014, shortly before the first anniversary of the accident, Schumacher was transferred back to his home. He has remained there ever since, receiving round-the-clock care with top-level medical support and highly specialised professionals at his side.
Updates on Michael Schumacher’s health from Jean Todt and the documentary
In recent years, the few updates regarding Michael Schumacher’s health have mainly come from Jean Todt, the former FIA president and Ferrari team principal during the German’s glory years at Maranello.
In July 2020, the Frenchman told the British newspaper Daily Mail: “I saw Michael last week. He is fighting. I hope the world will be able to see him again soon. That is why he and his family are fighting.”
Later, in November, Jean Todt once again let a few details emerge in an interview with RTL: “Listen, you know that this is a question on which I will be extremely reserved. I see Michael very often, I see him once or twice a month. My answer is always the same: he is fighting and we can only wish him and his family that things improve.”
Perhaps the most truthful words about Michael Schumacher, however, came from his closest family members without too much reflection. In September 2021, Netflix released “Schumacher”, a documentary about the driver’s life, in which his wife Corinna Schumacher, without going into detail, delivered a powerful and emotional sentence about Michael’s condition: “Michael is missed every day, and it’s not just me, he’s missed by the children, by the family, by his father, by everyone around him. Even though he is here, he is not the same, but he is here.”
His son Mick Schumacher also speaks in the documentary and, emotionally, leaves little doubt about Michael’s condition, admitting that he is with them but cannot communicate. “After the accident, those experiences, those moments that are so typical for a family, are no longer there. At least not as they used to be. And in my opinion, that is very unfair.”
“I think now my father and I would understand each other in a different way. I think we would speak a very similar language, the language of motorsport, and we would have a lot to talk about. And that’s what I keep thinking about. I think about how nice it would have been, about what could have been,” he laments.
Finally, in October 2024, it was reported that the multiple world champion was present at the wedding of his daughter Gina-Maria, although there are naturally no photos to confirm this, in line with the strict protection policy adopted by the Schumacher family in recent years.
In 2025, the German legend became a grandfather thanks to Gina-Maria, and it also emerged that he signed a helmet, with the help of his wife Corinna, for a charitable cause.
Why are there no updates on Michael Schumacher’s health?
Why does no journalist receive information about Michael Schumacher’s condition? Our colleagues from the German edition of Motorsport.com speak of a kind of ethical safeguard. “In fact, there is a sort of ‘gentleman’s agreement’ between the press, the Schumacher family and Sabine Kehm, the family’s spokesperson,” they explained. “For example, Schumacher is only talked about when the family speaks.”
“On the other hand, there are many magazines and websites that report all kinds of things, most of which are completely wrong or in very poor taste. But the Schumacher family has excellent lawyers who deal with these cases, and usually the fine for violating the family’s privacy is extremely high. Many media outlets do nothing out of fear of being fined. Others do it to sell more magazines or generate more clicks.”
The problem is that Sabine Kehm and the family do not share much information. In practice, they speak only once a year, so many so-called ‘journalists’ unfortunately invent their own stories.
The possible treatment in Paris
One of the most recent reports concerning the Ferrari legend, albeit without official confirmation from the family, involved a trip by the German to the Georges-Pompidou Hospital in Paris for a “secret treatment”. In September 2019, Le Parisien was the first to report that “Schumi” had undergone treatment with Dr Philippe Menasché, a leading specialist in stem cell research.
The publication also claimed that Schumacher had already visited the hospital twice that year, having been transported by helicopter from Geneva, where he lives. It is not known whether the newspaper was taken to court by the family.
Subsequently, in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca, Dr Menasché denied having administered stem cell treatment to Schumacher: “I do not perform miracles. My team is not carrying out any experiments, an abominable term that does not correspond to the vision of what medicine should be.”
The book by former manager Willi Weber
In 2022, Schumacher’s former manager published the book “Gasoline in the blood – Michael Schumacher”, in which he revisits his relationship with the former champion and shares his version of the break with the Schumacher family. He says he felt hurt by Schumacher, describing him as “stingy” and “mean”, but also states that if he could speak to Michael, he would tell him that he would always be “there for him, to sort everything out”. He would also tell him: “I miss you.”
However, Willi Weber also lashed out at Corinna Schumacher and Jean Todt over the way they sidelined him after the accident, when he wanted to know how his old friend was doing and what had happened: “On the day of the accident, I was at an event, in a hotel, and my mobile phone rang. A friend told me that Michael had had a skiing accident, but it did not seem serious. Then they told me he had been taken to hospital.”
“I called his wife, but she did not answer. I called Todt to ask if I should go to the hospital and he told me to wait, that it was ‘too early’. I called again the next day and nobody answered. I waited a few days so as not to disturb them, but I understood that they wanted to keep me out of this story.”
“This hurt me deeply. Since then, I have tried to contact Corinna hundreds of times.”
Mick Schumacher and the return of the family name to Formula 1
Michael Schumacher’s eldest son, Mick, made his Formula 1 debut in 2021 with the Haas team after winning the Formula 2 championship. With the support of the Ferrari Driver Academy, he was able to follow in his father’s footsteps, but he struggled over two seasons and was not retained for 2023, bringing his time in the Formula 1 paddock to just two years.
Mercedes, which benefited greatly from Michael Schumacher’s support during its return to Formula 1 in 2010, decided to back the young Mick by signing him as a reserve driver for the 2023 season. He has also competed in the World Endurance Championship with Alpine and will make his IndyCar debut next year.
Michael Schumacher will turn 57 on 3 January. Lewis Hamilton matched his record of seven world titles in 2020, along with several other records that have fallen due to the nature of modern Formula 1, with a higher number of races. Yet Schumacher’s legend is more alive than ever. Will we see him again? Keep fighting, Michael!
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