Helmet Cam Caused Racer's Injuries in Ski Crash: Journo

Michael Schumacher's son reportedly blaming GoPro camera for brain damage
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 13, 2014 12:48 PM CDT
Helmet Cam Caused Racer's Injuries in Ski Crash: Journo
In this Oct. 4, 2012, file photo, Michael Schumacher announces his retirement from Formula One at the end of the 2012 season during a press conference at the Suzuka Circuit venue in Suzuka, Japan.   (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye, file)

Racing champ Michael Schumacher is still slowly recovering after serious brain damage sustained during a skiing accident last December, and the fingers are once again pointing toward a previously mentioned suspect to blame for his injuries: the camera mounted on his ski helmet. French journalist Jean-Louis Moncet claims that he recently talked to Schumacher's son Mick—who was skiing with his dad when the accident took place—and that "the problem for Michael was not the hit, but the mounting of the GoPro camera that he had on his helmet that injured his brain," he said on a European radio station, per Metro UK. Schumacher is currently recovering "slowly" at his Swiss estate with medical care that's estimated to cost about $185,000 a month, 9 News reports.

The possibility that Schumacher's helmet-mounted GoPro could have been responsible for his injuries was floated as far back as February by the Telegraph, which said that investigators suspected "the presence of a solid object between a helmet colliding with a rock would weaken the structure" (Schumacher hit his head on a rock after falling and the helmet reportedly split in two). Whether Moncet's assertion is based on actual confirmation from investigators or simply on the son's own beliefs has yet to be officially determined, but either way, GoPro can't be happy about the news: Business Insider notes that GoPro shares were down as much as 10% in early trading today. (More Michael Schumacher stories.)

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