Update: Jean-Louis Moncet has since tweeted that the involvement of a GoPro in the severity of Michael Schumacher’s head injuries was only his opinion and not that of the racing driver’s son.
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Michael Schumacher’s brain injury may have been caused by his helmet-mounted GoPro rather than the impact of his crash, it has emerged.
The seven-time Formula 1 world champion spent six traumatic months in a hospital after suffering a head injury while skiing last December, and is still being treated at his home in Switzerland now.
The claims were made by French F1 commentator Jean-Louis Moncet after speaking to Schumacher’s son Mick.
Moncet told ‘Europe 1’ radio: “The problem for Michael was not the hit, but the mounting of the Go-Pro camera that he had on his helmet that injured the brain.”
This was an issue that was looked into by experts in the months after the accident first took place, with a report in The Telegraph reading:
“Investigators believe [Schumacher’s] helmet camera could have worsened the blown, and caused the helmet to shatter into pieces.
“Experts from ENSA, the world-renowned ski and climbing academy in the French ski resort of Chamonix, have conducted tests to determine whether a solid object between a helmet colliding with a rock would weaken the structure.
“‘The helmet completely broke. It was in at least two parts. ENSA analysed the the helmet to check the material, and all was OK,’ said a source close to the investigation.
“‘But why did it explode on impact? Here the camera comes into question.’”
Schumacher is under the care of an extensive team of medical experts in his Swiss home, and Moncet continued to say that he is recovering, but at a slow pace.
“I saw his son and he told me that Schumi is waking up very slowly,” he added.
“Although things are going at a slow pace, he has a lot of time. I would say he has a whole life in front of him to get back on track.”
There was also promising news on the 45-year-old German’s recovery from Ferrari boss Jean Todt last week.
“We must assume that Schumacher can lead a relatively normal life again within a short period of time,” he said.
“We can say he can probably never drive a Formula 1 car again, but he is fighting and his condition has improved.”