’Small, encouraging signs’ for Schumacher

Michael Schumacher is showing "small, encouraging signs" in his long recovery from "severe injuries", the seven time world champion’s management announced on Wednesday in a rare official update.

The statement follows speculation the great former Ferrari and Mercedes driver’s family has now been told Schumacher, 45, is unlikely to recover, almost eleven weeks into his coma after a skiing fall in the French alps.

But Schumacher’s manager Sabine Kehm said in the communique on Wednesday: "We are confident Michael will pull through and will wake up.

"There sometimes are small, encouraging signs, but we also know this is the time to be very patient."

The Schumacher camp has been criticised for not disclosing enough information to the media and his legions of fans about the German’s recovery.

Wednesday’s statement said the family is in fact "extremely grateful" for the sympathy and interest, but "it should not be forgotten Michael’s family is dealing with an extremely intimate and fragile situation.

"It is very hard to comprehend for all of us that Michael, who had overcome a lot of precarious situations in the past, has been hurt so terribly in such a banal situation," Kehm said.

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“We are and remain confident that Michael will pull through and will wake up,” said Sabine Kehm. “There sometimes are small, encouraging signs, but we also know that this is the time to be very patient.

“Michael has suffered severe injuries. It is very hard to comprehend for all of us that Michael, who had overcome a lot of situations in the past, has been hurt so terribly in such a banal situation.

“It was clear from the start that this will be a long and hard fight for Michael. We are taking this fight on together with the team of doctors, whom we fully trust. The length of the process is not the important part for us.

“It is heart-warming to see how much sympathy his family is shown and I can say that the family is extremely grateful for it. However, it should not be forgotten that Michael’s family is dealing with an extremely intimate and fragile situation. And I would like to remind all of us that Michael has always actively kept his family out of the public eye and consequently protected their private lives.

“We try to channel all the energies we have toward Michael and we firmly believe that this will help him. And we believe that he will also win this fight.”