Confident Schumacher will pull through and wake up - Kehm

Following earlier negative reports published in various newspapers, Michael Schumacher's condition is showing signs of improvement, according to the German's agent, Sabine Kehm.

“We are and remain confident that Michael will pull through and will wake up,” his agent and spokeswoman, Sabine Kehm, said in a written statement.

“There sometimes are small, encouraging signs, but we also know that this is the time to be very patient,” she added.

Schumacher, 45, was hospitalized on 29 December following a ski crash in the French Alps resort of Meribel. The German has been comatose at the hospital of Grenoble ever since, even though doctors started reducing the sedation towards the end of January to wake him up the coma.

“It was clear from the start that this will be a long and hard fight. Michael has suffered severe injuries. It is very hard to comprehend for all of us that Michael, who had overcome a lot of precarious situations in the past, has been hurt so terribly in such a banal situation.”

The statements by Sabina Kehm radically contradict recent reports published in Gazetta dello Sport. The Italian newspaper published that Schumacher has lost more than 15kg since he was admitted to hospital and that Schumacher failed to show any signs of awareness, including eyelid movement or finger twitches. The latter is said to be a critical indication for comatose patients, and the lack thereof would be worrying.