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Michael Schumacher

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Michael Schumacher
Formula One World Championship career
NationalityGermany German
Active years1991–2006
TeamsJordan, Benetton, Ferrari
Entries250 (248 starts)
Championships7 (1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004)
Wins91
Podiums154
Career points1,369
Pole positions68
Fastest laps76
First entry1991 Belgian Grand Prix
First win1992 Belgian Grand Prix
Last win2006 Chinese Grand Prix
Last entry2006 Brazilian Grand Prix
2006 position2nd (121 pts)

Michael Schumacher (German pronunciation: ˈmɪçaʔeːl ˈʃuːmaχɐⓘ; born January 3, 1969, in Hürth-Hermülheim, Germany)[1] is a former Formula One driver, seven-time world champion, and current test driver for Ferrari. According to the official Formula One website, he is "statistically the greatest driver the sport has ever seen".[2] He is the first German to win the Formula One World championship,[3] and is credited with popularising Formula One in Germany.[4] In a 2006 FIA survey, Michael Schumacher was voted the most popular driver among Formula One fans.[5]

After winning two championships with Benetton, Michael Schumacher moved to Scuderia Ferrari in 1996 and won five consecutive drivers' titles with them from 2000–2004. Schumacher holds many records in Formula One, including most drivers' championships, race victories, fastest laps, pole positions, points scored and most races won in a single season. Schumacher is the only Formula One driver to have an entire season of podium finishes. His driving sometimes created controversy: he was twice involved in collisions that determined the outcome of the world championship, most notably his disqualification from the 1997 championship for causing a collision with Jacques Villeneuve.[6] After the 2006 Formula One season Schumacher retired from race driving.[7]

Off the track, Schumacher is an ambassador for UNESCO and a spokesman for driver safety. He has been involved in numerous humanitarian efforts throughout his life and donated tens of millions of dollars to charity.[8] He is the elder brother of former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, currently racing in Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM)[1]. They stand as the only brothers in F1 history to have both win races and scoring the first ever 1-2 finish in Formula One.

He is currently acting as advisor and special test driver for the 2008 Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team.




Family and off-track life

Schumacher's younger brother Ralf was a Formula One driver until the end of 2007.[1] In August 1995, Michael married Corinna Betsch. They have two children, Gina-Maria (born in 1997) and Mick (born in 1999). He has always been very protective of his private life[9] and is known to dislike the celebrity spotlight, preferring a simple life. The family currently lives in Switzerland. Their home is a 650 m² mansion with its own underground garage and petrol station, situated on a private beach on Lake Geneva.[10] The family has two dogs - one stray that Corinna fell in love with in Brazil, and a German Shepherd "Ed" whose entrance to the family made headlines after Schumacher personally drove a taxi through the Bavarian town of Coburg so that the family could catch a return flight to Switzerland,[11] for which both Schumacher and the taxi driver would be reprimanded.[12]

In 2005 Eurobusiness magazine identified Schumacher as the world's first billionaire athlete. His 2004 salary was reported to be around US$80 million.[13] Forbes magazine ranked him 17th in their "The World's Most Powerful Celebrities" list.[14] A significant share of his income came from advertising. For example, Deutsche Vermögensberatung paid him $8 million over three years from 1999 for wearing a 10 by 8 centimetre advertisement on his post-race cap.[15] The deal was extended until 2010.[16] He donated $10 million for aid after the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.[17] His donation surpassed that of any other sports person, most sports leagues, many worldwide corporations and even some countries.[18]

One of his main hobbies is horse riding, and he plays football for his local team FC Echichens.[19] He has appeared in several football charity games[20] and organised games between Formula One drivers.[21]

Schumacher is a special ambassador to UNESCO and has donated 1.5 million Euros to the organization.[22] Additionally, he paid for the construction of a school for poor children and for area improvements in Dakar, Senegal. He supports a hospital for child victims of war in Sarajevo, which specialises in caring for amputees. In Lima, Peru he funded the "Palace for the Poor", a centre for helping homeless street children obtain an education, clothing, food, medical attention, and shelter. He stated his interest in these various efforts was piqued both by his love for children and the fact that these causes had received little attention. While an exact figure for the amount of money he has donated throughout his life is unknown, it is known that in his last four years as a driver, he donated at least $50 million.[8]

Since his participation in a FIA European road safety campaign, as part of his punishment after the collision at the 1997 European Grand Prix, Schumacher has continued to support other campaigns, such as Make Roads Safe, which is led by the FIA Foundation and calls on G8 countries and the UN to recognise global road deaths as a major global health issue.


Books

  • Allen, James (1999). Michael Schumacher : Driven to Extremes. Bantam Books. ISBN 0-553-81214-9. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  • Allen, James (2007). Edge of Greatness. Headline. ISBN 978-0-7553-1678-6. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  • Collings, Timothy (2004). The Piranha Club. Virgin Books. ISBN 0-7535-0965-2. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  • Collings, Timothy (2005). Team Schumacher. Highdown. ISBN 1-905156-03-0. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  • Domenjoz, Luc (2002). Michael Schumacher : Rise of a genius. Parragon. ISBN 0-75259-228-9.
  • Henry, Alan (ed.) (1992). Autocourse 1992 - 93. Hazleton Publishing. ISBN 0-905138-96-1. {{cite book}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  • Henry, Alan (1996). Wheel to Wheel: Great Duels of Formula One Racing. Weidenfeld Nicolson Illustrated. ISBN 0-7538-0522-7.
  • Hilton, Christopher (2003). Michael Schumacher : The greatest of all. Haynes. ISBN 1-84425-044-X. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  • Hilton, Christopher (2006). Michael Schumacher : The Whole Story. Haynes. ISBN 1-844250-08-3. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  • Kehm, Sabine (2003). Michael Schumacher. Driving Force. Random House. ISBN 0-091894-352.
  • Matchett, Steve (1995). Life in the Fast Lane: The Story of the Benetton Grand Prix Year. ISBN 0-297-81610-1.
  • Matchett, Steve (1999). The Mechanic's Tale: Life in the Pit Lanes of Formula One. ISBN 0-7603-0754-7.
  • Williams, Richard (1999). The Death of Ayrton Senna. Bloomsbury. ISBN 0-747544-956. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

References and notes

  1. ^ a b c "Hall of Fame - World Champions: Michael Schumacher". The Official Formula 1 Website. 2006. Retrieved 2006-10-05.
  2. ^ "Michael Schumacher - the end of an era". The Official Formula 1 Website. 2006-09-10. Retrieved 2006-10-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ Jochen Rindt, who was born in Germany, won the Formula One World Championship under the Austrian flag.
  4. ^ Sapa (2006-09-11). "The greatest driver of all time!". SuperWheels. Retrieved 2006-10-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ "Schumacher tops F1 supporter poll". BBC Sport. 2006-09-27. Retrieved 2006-10-25. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ Benson, Andrew (2006-05-28). "Schumacher's chequered history". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2006-11-08. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ "It's official: Schumi to retire". ITV. 2006-09-11. Retrieved 2006-10-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ a b Duff, Alex (2006-09-10). "Schumacher, Seven-Time Champion, to Quit Formula One (Update1)". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2007-01-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  9. ^ Holt, Sarah (2006-10-22). "Who is the real Schumacher?". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2006-10-22.
  10. ^ "Schumi moves into $30m mansion". Wheels24. 2007-03-20. Retrieved 2008-03-23.
  11. ^ "Taxi for Schumacher". BBC Sport. 2007-12-12. Retrieved 2007-12-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ "Police fuming over Schumacher's taxi race". AFP. 2007-12-15. Retrieved 2008-03-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Reid, Angus (2006-07-11). "Sports: How Big Is Too Big?". Mediacheck. thetyee.ca. Retrieved 2006-10-24. Forbes magazine has not yet included him on its billionaires list. More recently other sources have estimated his net worth in 2006 somewhat lower, www.f1i.com reports that it 'surpassed $800M'. "Retired Schu to earn $26 m in 2007 - report". www.f1i.com. 18 September 2006. Retrieved 2007-01-23. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help))
  14. ^ "The Celebrity 100". Forbes.com. 2005. Retrieved 2006-10-25.
  15. ^ "MOT: Schumacher slaps $11.9 m price on his head". AAP Sports News. 1999-11-11. Retrieved 2006-10-24.
  16. ^ "Schumacher's sponsor extends contract". F1Racing.net. 2005-08-31. Retrieved 2006-10-24.
  17. ^ "Schumacher donates $10 m relief aid". CNN.com. 2005-01-04. Retrieved 2006-10-24.
  18. ^ McAllister, Mike (2005-11-11). "My Sportsman: Michael Schumacher". 2005 Sportsman of the Year. SI.com. Retrieved 2006-10-25.
  19. ^ "Schumi urged to lace up his boots". Wheels24. 2006-10-25. Retrieved 2006-11-01.
  20. ^ "FIFA Fair Play: Playing for a better world". FIFA.com. 2004-12-16. Retrieved 2006-10-25.
  21. ^ "Thoughts on Schumacher". BBC Sport. 2006-09-10. Retrieved 2006-10-25.
  22. ^ "Michael Schumacher, a UNESCO champion". UNESCO. 2002. Retrieved 2006-10-25.

All race and championship results (1991 - 2006) are taken from the Official Formula 1 Website. 1991 Season review onwards. www.formula1.com. Retrieved 23 May 2007

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to Michael Schumacher.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Michael Schumacher.
Sporting positions
Preceded by German Formula Three champion
1990 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Macau GP winner
1990 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Formula One World Champion
1994-1995 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Formula One World Champion
2000-2001-2002-2003-2004 		Succeeded by
Awards
Preceded by German Sportsman of the Year
1995 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Autosport
International Driver of the Year
1995 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Autosport
International Driver of the Year
2000-2002 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Laureus World Sportsman of the Year
2002 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Laureus World Sportsman of the Year
2004 		Succeeded by
Preceded by German Sportsman of the Year
2004 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Lorenzo Bandini Trophy
2003 		Succeeded by
Records
Preceded by Most Grand Prix wins
91 wins,
52nd at the 2001 Belgian GP 		Succeeded by


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