Michael Schumacher signs helmet to be worn by fellow F1 champion at Bahrain Grand Prix
Michael Schumacher held a pen in his hand to sign a helmet worn by Brit icon Jackie Stewart at the Bahrain Grand Prix circuit.
The Ferrari legend's wife Corinna ensured he was one of the 20 living Formula 1 world champions to autograph the unique charity item.
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Schumacher has been absent from the public eye since suffering a life-altering brain injury following a skiing accident in 2013.
He was placed in a medically induced coma but returned to the family home on Lake Geneva in September 2014.
Over the past decade, Schumacher has been cared for by his loving wife Corinna and a close team of trusted professionals.
His inner circle have been fiercely protective of his privacy, with only scarce updates emerging on his current condition.
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However, in a touching tribute, Schumacher was able to initial a race helmet that is to be auctioned for charity.
With the guiding hand of his wife Corinna, the 56-year-old has penned his initials ‘MS’ onto the white and tartan headgear.
It means Schumacher's mark is alongside Lewis Hamilton's, Fernando Alonso's, Max Verstappen's, and all 16 other living F1 world champions.
Three-time champion Stewart wore the helmet during a tribute lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix circuit ahead of Sunday's race.
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The 85-year-old donned the item while driving his 1973 title-winning Tyrrell on the 60th anniversary of his Formula 1 debut.
He will then auction the near-priceless artifact to raise funds for his own 'Sir Jackie Stewart’s Race Against Dementia' charity.
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"It is wonderful that Michael could sign the helmet in this worthy cause, a disease for which there is no cure," .
"His wife [Corinna] helped him, and it completed the set of every single champion still with us."
A spokeswoman for the Schumacher family later confirmed to Reuters that the details provided by Stewart were indeed correct.
Stewart set up the charity to raise funds for dementia research after his wife of 53 years, Lady Helen, was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2014.
"Just the other day it was time for dinner, she's getting up and I'm sitting close by, and she says, 'Where's Jackie?' That's the first time that's happened, and that's only a few weeks ago," he told the .
"A bad feeling came over me," Stewart added, describing his wife's mind as being in "a new world".
All living F1 world champions
Jackie Stewart - 85 years old
Mario Andretti – 85 years old
Alan Jones – 78 years old
Emerson Fittipaldi – 78 years old
Keke Rosberg – 76 years old
Jody Scheckter – 75 years old
Nelson Piquet – 72 years old
Nigel Mansell – 71 years old
Alain Prost – 70 years old
Damon Hill – 70 years old
Michael Schumacher – 56 years old
Mika Häkkinen – 56 years old
Jacques Villeneuve – 54 years old
Kimi Räikkönen – 45 years old
Jenson Button – 45 years old
Fernando Alonso – 43 years old
Lewis Hamilton – 40 years old
Nico Rosberg – 39 years old
Sebastian Vettel – 37 years old
Max Verstappen – 27 years old
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As for Schumacher, he suffered his accident a few months before Lady Stewart's diagnosis, and updates have been scarce since.
He was said to have attended the wedding of his daughter Gina-Maria in October, however, no official confirmation was revealed.
Schumacher remains one of the elite global figures in motorsport a decade on from his accident, such was his legacy on track.
He won five of his seven titles at Ferrari from 2000 to 2004, after taking his first pair with Benetton in 1994 and 1995.
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After stepping away from the sport in 2006, he made a comeback four years later for Mercedes' first season back in F1.
Despite on-track struggles, his influence and expertise still helped put the Silver Arrows on a path to success with Hamilton and Toto Wolff at the helm during the hybrid era of the 2010s.
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