Michael Schumacher’s brother and former Formula 1 driver Ralf comes out as gay, sharing a photo with his partner on social media along with a heartfelt message

• Ralf posted a photo on Instagram with him and another man standing on a boat
• Actress Carmen Geiss, a close friend, offered her full support for Ralf’s coming out

The Formula 1 driver and brother of Michael Schumacher has come out on social media.

The seven-time F1 champion’s close friend took to Instagram on Sunday to post a photo of himself and another man standing arm in arm on a boat.

The image caption read: “The most beautiful thing in life is to have the right partner by your side with whom you can share everything.

Ralf’s close friend and German actress Carmen Geiss responded to his social media post, writing: ‘I LOVE YOU BOTH.

“You have the best partner you could ever imagine, Etienne. After two years, you can finally show your love to the world. I have known Ralf for over 25 years and he has always been a great joy to me.

“Always liberal, a good-hearted person whom I can call day and night and above all who has always been honest with me in his position.

“I am happy to have been part of this love and even happier for the two who sought and found each other, because I also love Étienne deeply.”

Click here to resize this module

In January, it was revealed that Michael Schumacher was able to “sit at the table”, according to retired star Johnny Herbert.

Schumacher, who won seven world championships during his career, was involved in a tragic skiing accident in December 2013 which left him in a medically induced coma.

Schumacher’s condition, who was placed in an induced coma and underwent several surgeries, has since been shrouded in mystery, with only brief updates coming from his close circle.

However, it appears that an update has been provided on the German, as former British F1 star Herbert revealed in a recent interview.

Herbert told BettingSites.co.uk: “I only hear second-hand things. I’ve heard from people who work in F1 that he sits at the dinner table, but I don’t know if that’s true. I can only read between the lines.”

“We haven’t heard much from the family and that’s understandable. It’s always been part of Michael and the family’s way of keeping everything very private, very secret.

“It’s continued since he started racing. I don’t think things have evolved in the way that many of us who knew him and many of his fans around the world would like to see.

“They would like to know, we would all like to know that things are evolving in a positive way. But since we have no information, we can only assume that he is not yet in a situation where there is a chance of recovery.”

Michael Schumacher’s brother and former Formula 1 driver Ralf comes out as gay, sharing a photo with his partner on social media along with a heartfelt message