( CNN ) -- Michael Schumacher , the most successful driver in Formula 1 history and one of the world 's highest-profile athletes , remains in critical condition after suffering severe head trauma in a skiing accident in the French Alps , hospital officials said Monday . Doctors who have been treating Schumacher at the University Hospital Center of Grenoble said at a news conference that it was too early to say what the driver 's prognosis might be . In a prepared statement , Schumacher 's family thanked doctors for doing `` everything possible to help Michael . '' They also thanked people around the world for the outpouring of support . The German , who retired from the elite motorsport for the second time in 2012 , fell and hit his head on a rock Sunday , said the director of the Meribel resort where Schumacher was skiing . Schumacher was in a coma when he arrived at the hospital and required immediate brain surgery , officials said . So far , he has undergone one operation and is being kept in a coma , they said Monday . Schumacher , who turns 45 Friday , won a record seven world titles in his spectacular Formula 1 career and `` also holds nearly every scoring record in the book by a considerable margin , '' according to the motorsport 's official website . He dominated the competition for the best part of a decade , winning five world championships in a row between 2000 and 2004 . Schumacher suffered serious injury once during his career in the high-speed sport , breaking his leg in a crash at the British Grand Prix in 1999 . Why induced comas help injured brains . Wearing a helmet . His skiing accident happened while he was off-piste ( on unmarked slopes ) Sunday morning in the mountains between Georges Bauduis Piste and La Biche Piste , resort director Christophe Gernignon-Lecomte said . Schumacher was wearing a helmet when he hit his head , Gernignon-Lecomte said . Rescuers reached him minutes later , and he was airlifted to a nearby hospital , the director said . Doctors at the Grenoble hospital said that without the helmet 's protection , Schumacher would n't have made it to the operating table . The cause of the accident , which is being investigated by police , remains unclear , Gernignon-Lecomte said . Schumacher `` was not alone '' when he fell , his spokeswoman Sabine Kehm said in a prepared statement . But nobody else was involved , she said . ' A great champion ' Former French Formula 1 driver Olivier Panis visited the hospital in Grenoble on Sunday but was not able to see Schumacher , CNN affiliate BFM TV reported . `` As I am here in Grenoble , I want to come to him and say hello , for old times ' sake . He is a great champion and someone very loved in Formula 1 , '' Panis told BFM . Schumacher has a wife , Corinna , and two children , Gina-Maria and Mick . His brother Ralf was also a Formula 1 driver . Schumacher made his Formula 1 debut in 1991 and won a record seven world titles -- five of them with Ferrari -- by the time he retired for the first time at the end of the 2006 championship . In that period of temporary retirement , he was involved in a motorcycle crash in Spain in 2009 that left him with a lingering neck injury , which delayed his racing comeback . He returned to the Formula 1 track with the revived Mercedes team in 2010 but struggled to repeat his earlier glories . His best finish was third place at last year 's European Grand Prix in Valencia , his only podium position in three seasons with the German manufacturer . ' A very good skier ' Sunday 's accident occurred at a popular ski resort in an area known for its challenging slopes above the tree line . `` If you are anything less than a really experienced skier , it 's very easy to lose your bearings , because you do n't see much in the way of vegetation around you or anything else , '' said Paul Hochman , a former contributing editor at SKI Magazine . `` It 's just literally all white , all snow . '' British journalist Kevin Garside told CNN that Schumacher is `` a very good skier '' but acknowledged that he is `` fearless '' -- like most Formula 1 drivers . `` These people do n't recognize fear like you and I do . There is no gene in their body that lets them go slow , '' Garside said . `` Schumacher was n't a skier when he joined Ferrari ( in 1996 ) , but by the end he was excellent , '' he said . `` Each year Ferrari used to have a media week in the Alps in Italy and they would always have a race -- and it was always Schumacher who won . He was a genuinely quick skier . `` But he was always very mindful of the danger around him , '' Garside added . `` I approached him for an interview at the top of the slope , and he said it would have to be quick as he wanted to check the piste . That meant he wanted to make sure he understood the slopes , the cambers , even though it was only a fun race . '' CNN 's Elwyn Lopez , Jonathan Mann and Christina Macfarlane contributed to this report .
Michael Schumacher 's family thanks doctors for doing `` everything possible '' Doctors say it 's too early to give a prognosis for Schumacher . Score: 6 Ski resort 's director says the 44-year-old hit his helmet on a rock after falling .