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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Fans honor injured Schumacher on his 45th birthday

Deborah Gouffran Associated Press

GRENOBLE, France – Michael Schumacher’s fans converged Friday on a hospital in the French Alps to honor the Formula One great on his 45th birthday, just days after he was critically injured in a skiing accident.

Schumacher has been in a medically induced coma since Sunday, when he struck his head on a rock while on a family vacation. Busloads of fans from Italy, where he anchored the Ferrari racing team, and Paris headed to the hospital in Grenoble where he is being treated.

Gulio Carissimo drove for four hours Friday morning to reach Grenoble. Wearing an F1 Ferrari jacket and hat, he said he felt compelled to come.

“With all the joy he has given us with his victories, we had to be there,” he said.

Seven-time F1 champion Schumacher, affectioinately known as Schumi by fans, has undergone two brain operations since the accident, and doctors treating him are keeping him sedated.