Schumacher pulls over for charity
“The tears failed to flow yesterday as Michael Schumacher, the world’s most successful racing driver, announced his retirement and then faced up to how to spend the rest of his life.
“The man the world believes has the hardest heart in sport refused to let slip what his future holds. Only his closest friends and confidants know what awaits him after a motor racing career that has raised millions of pounds for charity.
“The son of a builder from Kerpen, near Cologne, has donated almost £30 million to projects around the world in the past four years alone and, if motor racing fails to hold its allure when he hangs up his helmet at the end of the Formula One season, it is thought that he might plough his considerable wealth into a full-time foundation.
“If the public perception of Schumacher for the past 15 years has been one of snarling arrogance, the private Schumacher, 37, is a warm family man whose tastes are as mundane as a Bacardi and Coke and a cigar, and who wants to know that his vast earnings are not all being stashed in offshore accounts.
“Unlike like many famous sportsmen or showbusiness stars, he has kept celebrity magazines at arm’s length and his donations would have gone almost unnoticed but for research by BusinessF1 magazine, which checked records in Germany. They found that Schumacher had contributed to the building of hospitals, orphan-ages and schools in areas such as Peru and Senegal.
“He was the biggest private donor to the Asian Tsunami Appeal, giving about £6 million, and works tirelessly for Unesco, the United Nations’ body that works with children.
“But so secretive is he about his giving, few, even in his Ferrari team, knew the extent of his charitable work …”
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