"Michael's condition is still critical, but stable," Schumacher's longtime manager, Sabine Kehm, said in a statement on Saturday that echoed her previous update on Wednesday.

"We stress that any information about his state of health that is not provided by the doctors treating him or by his management is not valid and pure speculation," she added, possibly in response to unofficial reports that Schumacher was out of danger.

Kehm also denied reports that his family had been reluctant to hand over a helmet-mounted camera worn by Schumacher at the time of the accident to police.

"Michael's helmet camera was voluntarily given to the investigating authorities by the family," Kehm said. "That this should have been done against the wishes of the family is untrue."

Kehm's statement is the first official information about Schumacher's condition released since Wednesday. Kehm said that Schumacher's doctors had told her that they were not planning a medical press conference over the weekend.

Accident probe

Investigators are still looking into the circumstances of the skiing accident last Sunday that left Schumacher in a coma with severe head injuries after he crashed into a rock. Among other things, they are looking at whether the pistes next to the accident site were correctly marked. Schumacher was skiing off-piste when the accident occurred.

Schumacher's 14-year-old son, who witnessed the accident, is also being questioned.

On Friday, several dozen fans gathered outside the University Clinic in Grenoble, France, where he is being treated, to mark the racing legend's 45th birthday.

Michael Schumacher was Formula One's most successful driver of all time. He won 91 Grand Prix races and seven drivers' championships during his career.

tj/msh (AFP, dpa, SID)