Stricken Formula One icon Michael Schumacher has reportedly been spotted arriving at his family's holiday home in Majorca - in what would be the first public sighting of the former world champion since his tragic skiing accident more than five years ago.
German magazine Bunte is reporting the 50-year-old spentthe holidays, including his birthday on January 3, at a luxury villa on the Mediterranean island before returning to his home at Lake Geneva, Switzerland.
Local residents told the magazine Schumacher arrived by helicopter at Port D'Andratx in the southwest of Majorca before being driven to the £30 million ($58m) Villa Yasmin, a large property with spectacular views, two swimming pools, and a helipad nestled in the mountains.
Bunte reported Schumacher was flown in a dark-blue Bell 429 Global Ranger helicopter that was specially adapted and that he had medical staff on standby throughout his stay.
Media reports claim Schumacher was spotted arriving by helicopter in Port d 'Andratx in Majorca. Photo / Getty
The former Formula One world champion is being cared for at the family's home on the banks of Lake Geneva in Switzerland. Photo / Getty
Schumacher's brother Ralf reportedly joined the family at the villa, while security workers on the island confirmed to Spanish publication Vanitatis the family had returned home.
Schumacher's spokesperson, Sabine Kehm, last year rejected reports the seven-time world champion would be moved to Majorca permanently as he continues his long recovery from the horror skiing accident in the French Alps in December 2013 that left him in an induced coma.
The German has not been seen in public since and details of his condition has been closely guarded.
Reports in December suggested Schumacher is "not bedridden or surviving on tubes".
His family put out a rare statement on the eve of his 50th birthday, saying that they are "doing everything humanly possible" to help him.
"You can be sure that he is in the very best of hands and that we are doing everything humanly possible to help him. Please understand if we are following Michael's wishes and keeping such a sensitive subject as health, as it has always been, in privacy. At the same time we say thank you very much for your friendship and wish you a healthy and happy year 2019."
Michael Schumacher's wife Corinna released a rare statement late last year. Photo / Getty
German Archbishop Georg Gänswein visited Schumacher in 2016 and told German newspaper Bild the former Ferrari driver "senses that loving people are around him, caring for him".
"I sat opposite him, took hold of both hands and looked at him," Gänswein said.
"His face is, as we all know, the typical Michael Schumacher face he has become only a little fuller."
