Ferrari fans plan red vigil for
Schumacher

[January 03, 2014]  (Reuters) — Ferrari fans will hold a silent 45th birthday tribute to Michael Schumacher outside his French hospital on Friday with the seven times Formula One world champion in a coma and fighting for his life after a skiing accident.

The Formula One team's Face book page said the Scuderia Ferrari Clubs wanted to show their support and were organizing "a silent and respectful event all in red" at the Grenoble hospital where the German has been since his fall on Sunday.

Ferrari said the team also planned a special tribute to their former driver, who won five successive titles with them, on the www.ferrarif1.com website.

Schumacher left Ferrari in 2006 but then came out of retirement in 2010 for a three-year comeback with Mercedes that ended in 2012.

The most successful driver in Formula One history, with 91 race wins to his credit, suffered head injuries while skiing off piste during a family vacation in the Alpine resort of Meribel on Sunday.

His agent Sabine Kehm said on Wednesday that he was in a stable condition and it was too early to talk about his further prospects. No further update was given on Thursday, the day before his birthday.

Doctors have carried out two operations so far, including one to remove a buildup of blood from his brain.

Schumacher's family posted a message on his official website (www.michael-schumacher.de) thanking all the well-wishers from around the world.

"They are giving us great support," it said. "We all know he is a fighter and will not give up."

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London; editing by Toby Davis)

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