JOIN USWishes pour in for Schumi
Wishes have been pouring in for Michael Schumacher after the retired seven-time Formula One world champion suffered severe head injuries in a skiing accident in the French Alps resort of Meribel on Sunday.
A spokesman for German chancellor Angela Merkel told a briefing: "We hope that he overcomes his injuries and can recover."
Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel said he was shocked. "I am shocked and I hope that he will get better as quickly as possible. I now wish his family a lot of strength," Vettel said.
Schumacher’s former team-mate at Benetton Martin Brundle opined that Schumacher, who was with Benetton for a period of four years, wasn’t taking any undue risks on the ski slopes.
"He's only a year out of the F1 cockpit but as a driven and competitive person you can't simply switch off and settle down at the end of a long career, you need challenges and achievements to keep the adrenalin flowing,”Brundle told to Sky TV.
“But from what I read he wasn't taking undue risks on the ski slopes, and it seems he's been very unlucky on this one. The need for machinery and speed will always be there, it's inevitable. When I read that Michael had received a blow to the right side of his head I couldn't help but think of Ayrton (Senna), and pondered why these things so often happen to the truly great” Brundle added.
After Schumacher made the switch to Ferrari, he had raced along side Brazilian Felipe Massa and the latter took to Twitter to express his sentiments. "I'm praying for God to protect you, brother!," Massa tweeted.
Ferrari themselves put out a statement. "Everyone at Ferrari has been in a state of anxiety since hearing about Michael Schumacher's accident."
Schumacher has been a hero for many people who took up the sport and India’s Narain Karthikeyan, one his fans before becoming an F1 driver for Jordan and HRT, expressed his shock.
"Terrible to hear about M Schumacher's skiing injury. If anyone can pull through this its you," Karthikeyan wrote on his Twitter account.
Fernando Alonso, who was the first driver of the modern generation to beat Schumacher to the drivers’championship, also took to Twitter to pray for the German’s quick recovery. "Get well soon Michael! Hope to hear some positive news very soon! #strongman".
Four-time Indy Car champion Dario Franchitti, who was forced to retire from the sport following an accident earlier this year, hoped that Schumacher would pull through like he always has.
"My thoughts are with Michael Schumacher and his family. If anyone can pull through this it's him," Franchiti said.
Former Alpine skiing champion Luc Alphand was stunned upon hearing about the German’s accident.
"I'm stunned. Skiing, for me and a lot of people, is a leisure before anything else. He might have hit a rock with his feet and you don't need to go fast to hurt yourself," Alphand said.