Schumi injured...

[tyssam5]

Looking at the size of the rocks where Michael went off piste, it's no wonder he's in such bad shape after hitting his head. It's going to be a tough, long road for him. Please God he makes a full recovery.

Is wearing helmets compulsory now when skiing ?

No, not compulsory for adults, and there seems to be two schools of thought on helmets - some make the argument that wearing one reduces peripheral vision and hearing, and psychologically makes you less conscious of others as you believe yourself to be a bit more invincible, thereby increasing your risk of having an accident.
There are no stats on any of this as helmets are relatively new, and it is more likely that those currently wearing helmets are newer to the sport and more likely to fall over/cause collisions due to inexperience. Experienced skiers are less likely to have worn helmets when they were learning years ago, and therefore less likely to wear them now.
We went out yesterday and bought one for Mr Rois-to-be, and I'll rent one in resort.

Praying he recovers from this freak accident.

Don't buy that. Goggles are what effect peripheral vision and most helmets don't cover the ears (or use detachable ear covers that are just for warmth. I was forced into one, but wouldn't go without now as it's super comfy and warm. Thankfully have only used it to avoid bumps from branches when searching for beer I hid in trees.

[seafoid]

Very long coma. I hope he's okay but it doesn't look great

[Minder]

Looking bleak for Schumacher


Doctors abandon attempt to bring Schumacher out of seven-week coma

The Times

Doctors treating Michael Schumacher have abandoned their attempt to bring him out of a coma seven weeks after he suffered a blow to the head in an off-piste skiing accident.
No reason was given for the decision to call off the process but it follows reports a fortnight ago that the Formula One star had contracted pneumonia while in intensive care in the University Hospital of Grenoble in France.
Schumacher's family have not confirmed the latest claim, made in the German magazine Focus, but admitted in a statement ten days ago that "we are aware the wake up phase can take a long time".
Doctors put the 45-year-old into an induced coma after the accident on December 29 to reduce brain swelling and give him a better chance of recovery. Focus said that the attempt to bring him round was called off last week, leading brain injury experts to fear that Schumacher's chances of making a full recovery had decreased.
"It is generally accepted that the longer the period of the coma or reduced state of consciousness, the less likely it is to have a good longer term prognosis," said Luke Gregg, a spokesman for Headway, the brain injury charity. "This is particularly if they have tried to rouse the patient or bring them out of an induced coma and this has not happened," he added.
"If a patient has been in a coma for seven weeks, I think it would be very unrealistic to suggest they will make a full recovery and be the exact same person they were before. But where there is life, there is hope, and we know there can be life after brain injury."
Mr Gregg blamed Hollywood for giving people false expectations of a quick recovery from a coma. "In the movies people wake up and say 'Hi, I'm back', but waking from a coma can take weeks," he said.
"Put simply, the effects of brain injury can be devastating and last a lifetime. It can change every aspect of you: walking, talking, thinking and feeling."
Only after 12 months without responding would a patient be diagnosed as being in an irreversible persistent vegetative state, he added.
The family issued a statement on Thursday saying that both they and Schumacher were drawing strength from the support of his fans and were determined not to give up.
"We are deeply touched by all the messages to get well soon for Michael which still are being sent from all over the world," they said. "This incredible support gives us and him strength."
News of the setback comes after Felipe Massa, a friend and former F1 colleague, said he detected signs that Schumacher's lips moved when he spoke to him on a recent hospital visit. "He was sleeping but looking quite normal — I think he even reacted a bit," Massa said on Saturday.

[GJL]

So sad. IMO the best driver the world has seen. Senna would have been close and came to a tragic end too.

[give her dixie]

Very sad news indeed. I had been hoping for good news but deep down in my gut I knew he was suffering.

I remember well the weekend he burst onto the F1 scence with a remarkable lap at Spa in Belgium in the Jordan during qualifying. In  his 1st GP, he set 4th fastest time, and everyone sat up and said, "here's one for the future".

He went on to achieve incredible feats in F1, and even those who didn't enjoy F1, tuned in every Sunday to watch live
racing. Having Murray Walker commentate was an added bonus !!

I got to see all the greats race, and to me, Schumacer was unreal. He took the sport to another level, and in his day, no one could touch him. Sadly though, Senna died just as Schumi was bursting onto the scene. A few years of watching those 2 race
would have been something else........

To me though, Senna is my all time F1 driver. However, Schumacher gave me endless hours of joy watching him race and in a way, he was so much like Senna.

Lets hope all is not lost and he can make some form of recovery.

[orangeman]

Hopefully he will recover and that it's just taking a little longer than anticipated.

[thebigfella]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1994_Spanish_Grand_Prix

Best drive ever from Schumacher. At one point he was matching Hill lap for lap despite being stuck in 5th gear.

[mouview]

So sad. IMO the best driver the world has seen. Senna would have been close and came to a tragic end too.

Not sure if he was the best ever, but I'd rate him ahead of Senna. For all the latter's brilliance he was temperamental and could occasionally be got at. Schumi was colder and more calculating.

[All of a Sludden]

IMO Schumacher is head and shoulders above any other driver from any era. He was ruthless. Senna was good, great even, but the movie Senna made him out to be the good guy, on many occasions he wasn't.
For me Schumacher's greatest victory was in Spa in 1995 from 16th on the grid on a very wet day. I was there.
His 7 world titles and 91 race wins may be surpassed but to me he will always be the greatest.

[orangeman]

Still not looking good.



Sources have claimed that Doctors treating Michael Schumacher and other medical experts have told his family that "only a miracle" can save him.


The seven-time Formula One world champion suffered serious brain injuries after hitting a rock during a skiing accident in the French Alpine ski resort of Meribel in late December.

He is being treated in hospital in Grenoble where he has been in an artificially induced coma for a total of 69 days.

Sources close to his family say the 45-year-old driver's wife Corinna and his brother, Ralf Schumacher, have been consulting brain specialists throughout Europe and have been told that his chances of recovery are minimal.

The family is said to be concerned that the French doctors treating Schumacher have little hope that he will recover and now assume that he will remain in a vegetative state for the rest of his life.

The reports come after his agent said he was "still in the wake up phase" and his medical situation is unchanged more than two months after his skiing accident.

Schumacher's family has released few details about his condition. French doctors operated to remove blood clots from his brain, but some were too deeply embedded.

Neurologists not involved in his treatment say the chances of a full recovery for the 45-year-old are increasingly slim, given the coma's duration and the extent of his injuries.

At the management team's request, the Grenoble hospital treating Schumacher has kept news about his condition to a minimum.

However sources close to his family say that the driver's prognosis is bleak. "The family has been told that only a miracle can bring him back now," a senior German journalist reporting on the Schumacher case said. " He is in a bad way but until the family issues a formal statement, we cannot publish anything," he added.

[give her dixie]

Doesn't look good for him by the various articles I was reading.

Very sad times for his family at present.

[orangeman]

Better news.

F1 champion Michael Schumacher shows "moments of consciousness" after months in a coma, agent says

[orangeman]

More speculation that Michael will not make a good recovery.

Gary Hartstein, a former F1 doctor, said: "I'm quite afraid (and virtually certain) we will never have any good news about Michael. At this point, I rather dread seeing that the family has put out a press release."


Writing on his blog, he added: "I can conceive of no possible reason that Michael's entourage, understandably extremely protective of his and their privacy, would not tell his fans if significantly good things have happened."

[orangeman]

Yet more speculation with very few answers.

[pullhard]

Hoping for the best for the great man, but I fear the worst