Schumacher makes landmark announcement

Ralf Schumacher, the six-time grand prix winner and younger brother of Michael, has outed himself.

The retired German racer announced on Instagram that he is in a relationship with a man.

He becomes the first openly gay driver in the recent history of Formula One and joins Hurley Hayward, an American sports car star and Le Mans winner, as a confirmed member of the LGBTQ+ community.

But both waited until long after they stopped competing at the top level before confirming they were gay.

Schumacher shared a picture on July 14 standing next to a man with their arms around each other, with the caption (translated from German) of “The most beautiful thing in life is when you have the right partner by your side with whom you can share everything”.

Ralf Schumacher and partner Etienne. Image: Ralf Schumacher Instagram

There was considerable speculation about Schumacher’s sexuality during his time in Formula One, where he won races for Williams and also drove for Jordan and Toyota.

An unconfirmed report at the time said Michael Schumacher would refuse interview requests from any journalist who wrote about his brother’s sexuality.

Ralf Schumacher was married for 14 years from 2001 to Cora Brinkmann, a former Playboy model who is now on the adult Only Fans platform.

The pair’s son, David, is now racing in the DTM with Mercedes.

Image: Steve Etherington/LAT Photographic

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