Flavio Briatore, former manager and a close mate of Michael Schumacher, has shared heartfelt words on the motor racing icon’s status post his catastrophic skiing accident back in December 2013. Corinna Schumacher has shrouded details of his ongoing care in utmost secrecy since the tragic event.
A select few have been granted access to visit Schumacher as he continues to need round-the-clock attention, over a decade beyond the incident. Briatore steered Schumacher to Benetton glory with two championship titles and stands among the privileged few to see the German post-accident.
Speaking to Italian outlet Corriere della Serra about Schumacher’s prevailing state, he confided: “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. Corinna and I talk often, though.”
Following his skiing mishap, Schumacher lingered 250 days in an induced coma until being transitioned home for further treatment. Scarce updates punctuate the silence, though Corinna provided rare insight during the ‘Schumacher’ Netflix documentary in 2021.
“I miss Michael every day,” she disclosed. “But it is not just me who misses him. It’s the children, the family, his father, everyone around him. I mean, everybody misses Michael, but Michael is here. Different, but he’s here, and that gives us strength.”, reports the Mirror.
“We’re together. We live together at home. We do therapy. We do everything we can to make Michael better and to make sure he’s comfortable. And to simply make him feel our family, our bond.
“‘Private is private’, as he always said. It’s very important to me that he can continue to enjoy his private life as much as possible. Michael always protected us and now we are protecting Michael.”
Jean Todt, the former Ferrari team principal during Schumacher’s era of dominance, has maintained visits with the F1 icon post-accident. “Michael is here, so I don’t miss him,” Todt expressed to L’Equipe in 2023.
“[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.
“That’s all there is to say. Unfortunately, fate struck him 10 years ago. He is no longer the Michael we knew in Formula 1.”