Formula 1 icon Michael Schumacher’s daughter, Gina-Maria, has largely lived a life away from the spotlight. However, she has forged quite a sporting career for herself already. Gina-Maria, 28, is Michael’s eldest child with wife Corinna Betsch, while the couple also have a son, Mick, 26, who has dabbled in F1 with Haas.
However, Gina-Maria, now based in Switzerland, is known as a successful athlete in her own right. In an interview with German broadcaster NDR, she revealed that although she tried karting, it was the equestrian life that truly captured her heart, saying she “preferred horses”.
The Schumacher family has faced immense challenges ever since Michael suffered a catastrophic skiing accident in Meribel, France back in December 2013.
The incident left him with a severe brain injury, and after being placed in a medically-induced coma, details about his recovery have been scarce since he returned to his Swiss home.
Gina-Maria, who often showcases her equestrian talents on Instagram, remains tight-lipped about her father’s health, maintaining the family’s privacy, reports Wales Online.
However, on January 3, Gina-Maria did share an emotional tribute to her father with a birthday message that read: “Happy B-Day to the best Dad,” accompanied by a message to her dad: “#keepfighting.”
The sport of western riding has been a fruitful endeavour for Gina-Maria and become an arena where she has experienced great success. In August 2017, she picked up a gold medal in the FEI World Reining Championships in Switzerland.
In February 2018, she won another gold medal at the National Reining Horse Association’s novice Cavalli. She also came top in the World Championships for junior riders in 2018.
Last year, Gina-Maria married her long-term partner Iain Bethke. More joy followed as she recently announced on Instagram that they have had their first child. “Welcome to the world, Millie,” Gina-Maria posted. “Born on March 29, our hearts are fuller than ever. We are beyond blessed to have you in our lives.”
Gina-Maria reportedly exchanged vows with Bethke at the Schumacher family’s opulent Majorcan villa. The wedding seemingly drew an exclusive guest list, including Michael’s brother Ralf and his partner Etienne Bosquet-Cassagne.
Guests were also treated to a chic pre-wedding bash at Mhares Sea Club, just south of Palma. There were no confirmed reports on whether Michael, 55, was at the festivities. However BILD reported that in an attempt to keep the celebration discreet, guests were asked to hand over their phones.
Gina-Maria has reportedly found solace in horse riding as she copes with her father’s condition. Along with her mother Corinna, the pair are believed to have set up a sprawling ranch in Texas.
According to the German publication Bunte, the ranch in Gordonville stretches over a massive 162 hectares and boasts 40 sizeable stables.
Teaming up with Bremen-based fashion label Herzen’s Angelegenheit, Gina-Maria has also created a clothing line inspired by her love for the equestrian lifestyle.
In the 2021 documentary, Schumacher, Corinna spoke about her husband’s recovery in a rare interview. “Michael is here,” she said. “Different, but he’s here, and that gives us strength, I find. We’re together.”
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share my Data” button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Cookie Notice.
