Angela Merkel fractures pelvis in ski accident

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has fractured a bone in her pelvis and suffered heavy bruising in a ski accident.

11:39 07 January 2014

A spokesman for Angela Merkel has confirmed that the German Chancellor was involved in a cross-country skiing accident in the Alpine Engadine region of eastern Switzerland, resulting in fractured bones and heavy bruising. 

 

Steffen Seibert added that Merkel had to cancel several visits as she was ordered to remain lying down as much as possible in the next three weeks. 

 

The spokesman also said that Merkel, who was reportedly not skiing very quickly at the time, was not initially aware of the injury until she went to see her doctor. The injury was described as "severe bruising linked with a partial fracture on the left, rear part of the pelvis".

 

However, Merkel, who will be using crutches, still wants to chair a cabinet meeting scheduled on Wednesday which is the first gathering of all her coalition ministers. Other than that, she will be working from home for most of the time. 

 

She also cancelled her trip to Poland that was originally scheduled this week and will not receive Luxembourg’s new Prime Minister Xavier Bettel in Berlin. 

 

Merkel’s snow sports accident came just days after German F1 legend Michael Schumaker’s own life-threatening skiing accident in France.