CORINNA Schumacher teared up when breaking her eight-year silence on the condition of her husband, FI legend Michael Schumacher, in a Netflix documentary released on September 15.
Speaking about his tragic skiing accident in December 2013 that left him impaired by a brain injury, she says Michael is 'different' since his injury, and that during his racing days she had always believed that 'guardian angels' were watching over her husband.
Corinna and Michael were married in 1995 and have two children together, Gina, 24, and Mick, 22, who has followed his father into F1. Both the children appear in the documentary.
She and her children miss his presence dearly as she says, "I miss Michael every day. But it's not just me who misses him. It's the children, the family, his father, everyone around him.
"Everybody misses Michael, but Michael is here - different, but here. He still shows me how strong he is every day.
"I have never blamed God for what happened. It was just really bad luck - all the bad luck anyone can have in life.
"It's always terrible when you say, 'Why is this happening to Michael or us?' But then why does it happen to other people?"
She also reveals in the documentary that Schumacher had complained about the snow conditions in the Alps and suggested flying to Dubai shortly before the tragic accident.
Corinna said: "Shortly before it happened in Meribel, he said to me, 'The snow isn't optimal. We could fly to Dubai and go skydiving there".
That was the last conversation the father-of-two had with his wife before he collided with a rock while skiing with his son Mick, suffering a catastrophic brain injury that left him in coma for six months.
Since then, Michael has been cared for privately and the family has kept details about his health tightly guarded.
Deeply protective of her husband, Corinna has been criticised by some.
But Corinna states Michael always valued privacy and that was why the family chose not to divulge too much about his condition.
"We are trying to carry on as a family, the way Michael liked it and still does. We live together at home. We do therapy. We do everything we can to make Michael better and to make sure he's comfortable," Corinna says.
"We are getting on with our lives: '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, now we are protecting Michael."
Son Mick says: "Since the accident, of course, these experiences, these moments that I believe many people have with their parents, are no longer present or to a lesser extent. And in my view, that is a little unfair.
"I think me and dad, we would understand each other in a different way now. Simply because we speak a similar language – the language of motor sport – and that we would have a lot more to talk about.
"And that is where my head is most of the time. Thinking that would be so cool … I would give up everything just for that."
The documentary reveals new archival video of Michael, including from his wedding.
Watching footage of their marriage, Corinna says: "He was really funny. I fell in love with him simply because he was a wonderful person. I just sensed that he was something special to me."
She describes how she fell for the driver when he helped her to clean up after dinner, deciding he was a "proper bloke."
"I think I'm incredibly fortunate to have met Michael. He's simply the most loveable person I've ever met," she says.
Corinna's update on her husband's condition is the first news of the driver's health since former Ferrari boss, Jean Todt, discussed it in May, saying "The beauty of what we have experienced is part of us and it goes on."
He added : "I don't leave him alone. Him, [his wife] Corinna, the family - we've had so many experiences together."
The update followed Todt's previous account of Michael's state in September last year, where he praised the work done by Corinna, who married Michael in August 1995.
Todt said then, "I've spent a lot of time with Corinna since Michael had his serious skiing accident on December 29, 2013. She is a great woman and runs the family.
"She hadn't expected that. It happened suddenly and she had no choice. But she does it very well. I trust her, she trusts me.
"Thanks to the work of his doctors and the cooperation of Corinna, who wanted him to survive, he survived - but with consequences."
Michael is considered by many as the sport's greatest ever driver having won seven championship titles.
The documentary includes interviews with other members of Michael's family, including his father Rolf and brother Ralf, as well as motorsport figures such as Todt, Bernie Ecclestone, Sebastian Vettel, Mika Häkkinen, Damon Hill, Flavio Briatore and David Coulthard.
Viewers will also be able to watch never-before-seen archive material in the documentary. - Agencies, September 19, 2021
