Schumacher's wife pleads for media to respect privacy

Michael Schumacher's exasperated wife pleaded on Tuesday with journalists to leave her family and doctors alone, as her famous husband remains in a coma after a ski accident in the French Alps.

Scores of reporters, television crews and photographers have descended on the hospital in the French city of Grenoble where the Formula One legend is in stable but critical condition following his Dec 29 accident.

Last week, Schumacher's manager Sabine Kehm deplored tactics used by some journalists to try to catch a glimpse of the seven-time world champion in his room, reporting that one had even dressed up as a priest to try to get in.

"Please support our shared fight with Michael. It is important to me that you take the pressure off the doctors and the hospital so they can do their work," Corinna Schumacher said in a statement addressed "to the media".

"Please have faith in their statements and leave the hospital. Please also leave our family in peace," she said.

News that Schumacher was in a coma after falling and slamming his head on a rock while skiing sent shockwaves through the sporting world, with journalists waiting anxiously to relay any update on his condition.

Following a flurry of speculation about his health, doctors looking after the 45-year-old said they would provide no further details of the treatment he is receiving in order to protect his right to privacy.

The German Federation of Journalists on Tuesday urged reporters to use restraint while covering the former racer's plight.

Federation chairman Michael Konken noted the German journalists' code of conduct requires "respect for the suffering of victims and the feelings of loved ones".

"That also applies when the victim is famous," he said.

(China Daily 01/09/2014 page24)