Ski boss lauds helmet awareness

Schumacher's injury could have been much worse without headgear

Michael Schumacher's helmet almost certainly saved his life and leisure skiers should always wear head protection, said the man behind the main safety measures in alpine skiing.

"Without a helmet, Michael Schumacher would be dead," Guenter Hujara, men's alpine skiing World Cup director, said on Monday.

Seven-time Formula One world champion Schumacher suffered serious head injuries in a crash skiing at the French resort of Meribel on the weekend. On Monday night he was listed in critical condition by doctors in Grenoble.

"Schumacher's injury is of the same sort as those suffered in recent seasons by (Switzerland's) Daniel Albrecht or (Austria's) Johan Grugger," said Hujara.

"They were seriously injured but they came out of it and went on to live normal lives.

"Schumacher didn't go as fast as they did so he has a good chance. Athletes have the strength to overcome such bad times."

But Hujara, who was one of the first ski officials to wear a helmet while at work and also wears headgear when riding his bicycle, warned all leisure skiers they should be inspired by the precautions taken by the professionals.

"Every leisure skier should be told to watch what the pros are doing. The pros wear helmets, so they should wear a helmet as well. In the case of a crash, in 50 percent of cases, a serious injury can be avoided thanks to the helmet."

Overseeing men's alpine skiing since 1991, Hujara took charge of the sport the same year Austrian hopeful Gernot Reinstadler was killed in training on the Lauberhorn course in Wengen.

Since then, he has introduced several measures to increase safety by installing two sets of safety nets on the courses, improving the quality of the snow and allowing back protection in downhill as well as braces for the knees, the most frequently injured part of the body in skiing.

Tougher rules

Super-G world champions Ulrike Maier and Regine Cavagnoud died on their skis in 1994 and 2001 respectively, and even though few deaths have occurred in recent years, serious accidents still are a part of the sport, especially in the speed events like downhill and Super-G.

The most serious recent crashes involved Albrecht, who remained in a coma for three weeks after crashing in training in Kitzbuehel in January 2009, and Grugger, who was seriously hurt on the same course two years later.

Both had to give up skiing.

The International Ski Federation (FIS) introduced tougher regulations for helmets at the start of the season, making sure they comply with the American and European safety standards known as ASTM 2040 and EN 1077.

Those standards test the resistance of the equipment at high speed and FIS ruled that the resistance of the helmets be certified at a speed of 6.8 meters per second (244 kph) instead of 5.4 meters per second in the past.

Hujara said the research done by FIS should have an impact on the safety of leisure skiers.

"It is important for the everyday skier to be aware they should wear a good helmet, respecting the best safety standards," he said.

"In the World Cup, we're testing equipment that can be directly useful to the leisure skiers like the helmets, the back protection and the knee braces."

While it is unclear what sort of headgear Schumacher was wearing, other experts said helmets for sale in shops are often not strong enough.

"An accident like this will shock people and maybe make them more aware of the importance of wearing a good helmet," said Andrea Capeletti, a spokesman for Bolle, one of the leading helmet makers.

Helmets can be bought from 20 euros ($27.63) in ski resorts and be "useless", he said, adding that the new helmets designed for top-flight skiers would go on sale at around 250 euros.

Capeletti said that data compiled by his company showed helmets are worn by almost one in two skiers in North America and Switzerland while the French and Italians seldom use them.

'Nothing in common'

While making it clear accidents like Schumacher's had "nothing in common with crashes in race conditions", French ski team doctor Stephane Bulle underlined that skiing is "an extremely dangerous sport".

"All the mountain doctors will tell you, it's getting worse and worse. People are careless, take risks and do not listen to professional advice," he said.

Bulle said equipment was not necessarily to blame and that the best helmets could not always save lives.

"When you hit a tree at 145 kph, you just don't have a chance.

"Speed is the danger, even if you don't take unreasonable risks," he said, adding that skiers should adapt their speed to their abilities.

"You can drive at 300 kph and take the necessary risks at a professional level and not be able to do the same in a leisure context," he said.

Bulle, who had to contend with many injuries on the French team this season - most frequently knee-related - said he hoped Schumacher's crash would increase awareness of the sport's dangers.

The use of a helmet was introduced in 1950s in the downhill, and in the 1990s in slaloms and giant slaloms by Italian world and Olympic champion Alberto Tomba.