Concern for Michael Schumacher

Schumacher "was suffering a serious brain trauma with coma on his arrival, which required an immediate neurosurgical operation," a hospital statement read. The German legend had reportedly been skiing off-piste with his son in the Meribel resort when he fell and hit his head on a rock. The above photo is archive material.

A renowned Parisian neurologist, Dr. Gerard Saillant, arrived at the Grenoble hospital in a police car to provide care for the 44-year-old. Saillant is a close associate of FIA President Jean Todt, once Schumacher's boss at Ferrari.

Initially, the director of the Meribel resort said Schumacher, who had been wearing a helmet, was "conscious but a little agitated". But after he had been transported to Grenoble, doctors realized the damage was far worse than first thought.

Schumacher, who definitively retired from motor racing in 2012, is one of Germany's most loved sport stars. He won more F1 titles (7) and races (91) than any other driver in the history of the sport.

Schumacher was on vacation with his wife and two kids. In addition to his family, former colleagues from his racing carreer have reportedly arrived in Grenoble. Jean Todt, Ferrari team principal during Schumacher's time there, and Ross Brawn, who worked with Schumacher at Benetton, Ferrari and later Mercedes, arrived at the hospital overnight, reported Sky Sport News.

Schumacher's storied Formula One career was not without incident. Perhaps his most famous crash, this 1994 collision with Damon Hill that ultimately clinched Schumacher's first ever title, was a comparatively minor one. In 1999 prior to the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, Schumacher broke his leg in the only F1 crash to keep him out of the cockpit for an extended period.

Ever the thrill-seeker, Schumacher's first retirement from F1 in 2006 freed him up to pursue other interests. Having left Ferrari, Schumacher took up sky diving and tried his hands at racing on two wheels. In this February 2009 crash in Spain, he seriously injured his neck, ribs and skull - this stopped him from replacing injured Felipe Massa at Ferrari later that year.

Millions of fans followed Schumacher's career on the track. And judging by the outpouring of support on social media sites, many are hoping the champion driver will recover from this accident, perhaps his most serious yet.