Seven-time Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher is paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair, according to Philippe Streiff, a former racing driver and friend; Philippe revealed this during an interview to French media after reportedly visiting the injured sports star.

"Schumacher is getting better, but everything is relative. It's very difficult. He can't speak... Like me, he is in a wheelchair, paralyzed. He has memory problems and speech problems," Philippe Streiff, paralyzed in a crash in 1989, said in an interview with French radio, cited by The Guardian.

Schumacher, the highest-paid athlete worldwide during his prime around the turn of the century, suffered serious head injuries in December 2013 while skiing in France.

After the accident the sports legend spent months in a medically induced coma before his family decided to continue rehabilitation at home in September 2014. Since then, family and management have kept his status a closely guarded secret. A man who was arrested in connection with the theft and illegal offer for sale of his medical records was found hanged in his Zurich cell in August.

A Schumacher spokesperson clarified that Streiff's comments were "his opinion," adding that it would be some time before another official update on his condition was released, according to a report from The Independent.

A doctor treating Schumacher said in October that the former F1 champion was making progress, but will need years to recover, according to Australia's ABC News.

"I have noticed some progress but I would say we will have to give him time," Payen, who treated Schumacher at the Grenoble hospital where Schumacher was taken after the accident.

"It is like for other patients. We are in a time scale of one to three years, so you need patience."