Prof Stephan Chabardes, the neurosurgeon who operated on Michael Schumacher, believes the next 48 hours will be ‘decisive’ in ascertaining whether the German racing legend will survive or not.

The 44-year-old seven time Formula One Drivers’ Champion fell and hit his head on a rock while skiing with his son at Meribel on Sunday morning.

Although the chief anaesthetist at the Grenoble University Hospital Centre where Schumacher was being treated – Jean-Francois Payen – refused to speculate about the extent of his injuries and whether he will have permanent brain damage should he survive, he noted that Schumacher’s helmet “protected him in part” and that “someone who hadn’t been wearing a helmet would not have got here.”

“It is too early, click here for more