Rescue chief reveals what happened after Michael Schumacher’s skiing accident
The mountain cop who led the rescue of stricken Michael Schumacher has opened up about the star’s devastating skiing accident.
Stephane Bozon spoke out exactly five years after the tragedy which rocked the sporting world and left the German F1 ace in a coma.
“I still remember that the emergency doctors of the helicopter had problems with the first care on the slopes because of the location of the accident”, he told German news outlet FOCUS.
“It was clear that it was very serious, otherwise we would not have used the helicopter. Mr Schumacher was lucky.”
Bozon, Commander of the Mountain constabulary of Savoyen, said the legend was skiing off piste in the French alpine resort of Meribel at the time of the accident.
“I saw the stone Schumacher encountered with his skis and the stone he hit with his head,” he said.
“The special thing was that it had snowed so little in the days before that the stones were slightly covered with snow, but only with a very thin blanket of snow. He could not see the stone.
“But if it had snowed more, Schumacher would probably just have glided over the first stone.
“The operator of the ski resort is not at fault. Because if you go off the slopes, it is at your own risk.”
And when asked if he had visited the family, the rescue chief revealed he had received no report on the sport star’s health.
He said: “No. I do not know how he is doing either.
“But I do think about this accident quite often. For example, when I see a slope with stones at the edge.
“That’s why I would like to hear good news about Michael Schumacher.”
Earlier this month it was revealed the race ace is “not surviving on tubes”, as new details about his recovery emerge.
Friends and family have shed new light on the condition of the seven-time Formula One champ after the accident in 2013.
They told how he is receiving £50,000-a-week ($A27,747) medical care while being treated in his home — not at a specialised hospital in a Swiss chateau.
The Daily Mail has claimed he is “not bedridden or surviving on tubes” and cite German magazine Bravo as reporting Schumacher is to be moved to a clinic in Dallas, Texas, that specialises in treating brain injuries.
Mark Weeks, the director, told the magazine: “We have a lot of experience with patients who are suffering this kind of trauma.
“There is probably no clinic in Europe that treats as many cases as we do.”
It comes after a German archbishop said last month that the legend “senses that loving people are around him”.
Georg Gänswein has told how he paid an emotional visit to see the Schumacher in 2016 as he recovered from his horror skiing accident three years earlier.
He said although Schumacher’s face has “become a little fuller” the record-breaking driver still looks the same as he did when last seen by his millions of fans.
“I sat opposite him, took hold of both hands and looked at him,” the 62-year-old — who is one of Pope Francis’s key advisers — said according to German newspaper Bild.
“He senses that loving people are around him, caring for him and, thank God, keeping the overly curious public away.”
Gänswein added: “Of course, I include Michael Schumacher and his family in my prayers.”
The much-loved sports star was critically injured when he fell while skiing with son Mick in the French Alps in December 2013.
Earlier it the star’s manager revealed Schumacher had a “secret dream” to disappear from public life.
The race ace’s family have always remained tight-lipped about the star’s condition leaving his legions of fans in the dark about his health.
It is believed the 49-year-old German is being cared for by a team of medical experts at his luxury home in Gland near Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
The much-loved driver’s manager has always insisted the superstar’s health is not a public matter — and it now may have finally been revealed why.
Speaking at a media meeting in March 2016, Sabine Kehm told how the seven-time F1 champ had always yearned for a life away from the cameras.
Her comments have only just been made public and could just reveal why she has never released any updates on the sport icon’s condition.
“In general the media have never reported on Michael and Corinna’s private life,” she said. “When he was in Switzerland, for example, it was clear he was a private individual.
“Once in a long discussion Michael said to me: ‘You don’t need to call me for the next year, I’m disappearing.’
“I think it was his secret dream to be able to do that some day. That’s why now I still want to protect his wishes in that I don’t let anything get out.”
Earlier this year, “close relatives” reportedly gave French magazine Paris Match an insight into Schuey’s current health.
One was quoted as saying: “When you put him in his wheelchair facing the beautiful panorama of the mountains overlooking the lake, Michael sometimes cries.”
And Schumacher’s former boss at Ferrari Jean Todt has told how he visits the race ace every month.
He told The Times: “I love Michael. I see his family. I wish the situation would be different.
“When people ask me what is my best memory, it’d say Suzuka in 2000. Michael is world champion after 21 years.
“I remember saying to Michael, ‘On a professional level, things will be different for us.”
Last November, Schumacher’s daughter has posted an inspirational message to his fans to keep the hope of his recovery alive
Gina-Maria, 20, wrote on Instagram: “There is only one happiness in this life, to love and be loved #keepfighting.”
One fan replied: “Magnificent, the power of love, god bless your family #Keepfighting #TeamMichael.”
His wife Corrina, 46, Gina-Maria and her brother Mick, 18, have rarely spoken out about his condition.
However, the star’s former manager Willi Weber said last October: “I find it very unfortunate that Michael’s fans do not know about his health. Why are they not being told the truth?”
In 2016 his team were forced to deny claims in a German magazine that he was now able to walk with the aid of therapists.
