`Small, encouraging signs` in Michael Schumacher`s condition: Agent

Paris: There are small signs of encouragement in Michael Schumacher`s condition but the former Formula 1 star still faces a long fight to recover after suffering brain damage in a skiing accident, his agent said on Wednesday.

"We are and remain confident that Michael will pull through and will wake up," his agent and spokeswoman Sabine Kehm said in a written statement. "There sometimes are small, encouraging signs, but we also know that this is the time to be very patient," she added. The seven-time world champion has been in the coma since smashing his head against a hidden rock during a low-speed ski-run in the French Alps just after Christmas.