Michael Schumacher app launched on champ’s 50th birthday

An official Michal Schumacher app has been launched, on the day of the seven-time F1 champion’s 50th birthday.

The German racing star suffered serious head injuries as a result of a freak skiing accident on December 29, 2013, and has been receiving specialist treatment since then.

The app’s release has been accompanied by a rare statement from the racer’s family, who have remained extremely protective of Schumacher’s privacy since the accident.

The statement, posted on Facebook, said that Schumacher was in the “very best of hands” and that “everything humanely possible” was being done to aid his recovery.

It added: “Please understand we are following Michael’s wishes and keeping such a sensitive subject as health, as it has always been, in privacy. At the same time, we say thank you very much for your friendship and wish you a healthy and happy year 2019.”

The new app will be a “virtual museum” of the driver’s successes. It is released alongside a exhibition at the Ferrari Museum in Maranello, Italy. The site plays host to some of the most important Ferrari single-seaters ever driven by Schumacher, and has been organised in partnership with the Keep Fighting Foundation – a charity set up to ‘channel the positive energy received by Michael Schumacher and the Schumacher family as a force for good in the world in achieving cultural and social benefit.’

A further statement from the family read: “We are very happy to celebrate Michael’s 50th birthday together with you and thank you from the bottom of our hearts that we can do this together. As a gift to him, you and us, Keep Fighting Foundation has created a virtual museum.”

The app is available to download now for both iOS and Android devices.