GRENOBLE, France (AFP) - Michael Schumacher's family is "confident" that the Formula One legend will recover from a life-threatening skiing accident that left him in a coma late last year, a spokeswoman said Wednesday.

"We are and remain confident that Michael will pull through and will wake up. There sometimes are small, encouraging signs, but we also know that this is the time to be very patient," read the statement from Sabine Kehm.