In a few hours, the tenth anniversary of the infamous skiing accident in Meribel will be marked, forever changing the life of Michael Schumacher and his familty. Since that December 29th, the seven-time world champion has never appeared publicly, with the family choosing to maintain maximum privacy about his conditions, allowing only a few chosen ones to visit.
For the occasion, BILD, one of the largest and most reliable German publications, has decided to publish “Schumi’s Long Fight,” a series in written form divided into several articles, revealing new important unpublished details about the dynamics of the accident and the rehabilitation path that Michael still faces today.
Michael Schumacher, the Faithful Reconstruction of the Accident
“On December 29, 2013, Schumacher went skiing in Méribel with his son Mick,” writes BILD. “The German skied in an unexplored area right next to the edge of the beginner’s slope ‘Biche.'”
“According to the Prosecutor, at 11:07, Schumi fell on a rock covered with snow and hit the right side of his head on another rock. The impact was so violent that the helmet cracked. The helmet camera captured everything.” A rescuer would also have said: “There was a lot of blood.”
Following the accident, the Kaiser was urgently transported to the Albertville-Moutiers hospital, then transferred to the more suitable facility in Grenoble on the same day. Doctors diagnosed a traumatic brain injury, later inducing him into a drug-induced coma for 250 days.
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The Beginning of the Long Rehabilitation Journey
“At the beginning of April 2014, four months after the accident, Michael showed moments of consciousness and awakening,” BILD reports. On June 16 of the same year, the historic manager Sabine Kehm announced that Schumi had left the Grenoble hospital, initially being admitted to the Canton Hospital in Vaud in Lausanne, then continuing his rehabilitation at home.
“Soon after being discharged, his medical records were stolen. An employee of the Swiss air rescue service was arrested as the main suspect. It is said that he offered the file to various media for about 50,000 euros. A few hours after his arrest on August 5, 2014, the man committed suicide in his cell.”
“At home, the Formula 1 legend receives 24-hour assistance in a private hospital department located in his former office. Up to 15 doctors, masseurs, and assistants are part of the care team.”
In addition to this, doctors have also tried to stimulate the memory of the German champion in various ways: “Schumi was not only shown the original radio traffic from the past, but he was also taken for a ride in a roaring Mercedes AMG. The goal was to stimulate the brain with familiar sounds.”
In 2018, neurologist Tobias Bonhoffer spoke about the trauma suffered by the former Ferrari driver: “In general, it can be said that the destruction of nerve tissue in the brain or spinal cord cannot be repaired. If the brain is damaged very severely, as happened to Schumacher, there are no longer enough nerve cells available to take on these tasks.”
The report concludes with a sad and brutal forecast, strongly suggesting that we are unlikely to see the Kaiser again as we knew him: “There is nothing to suggest that we will see Michael Schumacher in a public appearance.”
Source: f1ingenerale
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