Michael Schumacher showing 'encouraging signs' says F1 legend's former boss Ross Brawn
FORMULA One legend Michael Schumacher is showing "encouraging signs", according to his former boss and long-time friend Ross Brawn.
Michael Schumacher with Ross Brawn
Brawn, who worked with Schumacher on all seven of his world titles, is one of the few people with an insight into the German’s medical condition.
Schumacher suffered catastrophic head injuries in a skiing accident in December 2013 near Meribel in the French Alps.
The extent of his condition remains a closely-guarded secret although it emerged in a court case in Germany in September that Schumacher is unable to walk.
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Michael Schumacher and Ross Brawn during their time together at Mercedes
There are encouraging signs and we are all praying every day that we see more of them
However, in a revealing interview with the BBC Brawn said: "The family have chosen to conduct Michael's convalescence in private and I must respect that.
"There are encouraging signs and we are all praying every day that we see more of them.
"So it is difficult for me to say very much and respect the family's privacy.
"All I would say is there is a lot of speculation about Michael's condition.
"Most of it's wrong and we just pray and hope every day that we continue to see some progress and that one day we can see Michael out and about and recovered form his terrible injuries."
Michael Schumacher and Ross Brawn at Ferrari
Schumacher was skiing off-piste with his son Mick when he fell and hit his head on a rock.
He was put into a medically induced coma because of traumatic brain injury but has spent most of the time since the accident being cared for at the family home in Switzerland.
His privacy is fiercely guarded by family and close friends and information about his health is rarely made public.
Michael Schumacher and Ross Brawn celebrate British Grand Prix success
But in September Schumacher’s lawyer Felix Damm told a German court the former Grand Prix ace "cannot walk" in response to false reports from December 2015 in German publication Die Bunte that he could "walk a couple of steps".
In a video interview released in May 2015, Schumacher's manager Sabine Kehm said that his condition was slowly improving "considering the severeness of the injury he had sustained."