Michael Schumacher's family is confident he will wake up after showing "small, encouraging signs" of improvement, according to a statement released on Wednesday morning.

The Formula One driver, who suffered serious head injuries in a skiing fall in the French Alps at the end of December, has been in an artificially induced coma in a French hospital for more than two months.

Doctors have been reducing the medication in the hope of reviving him.

On Wednesday, his agent Sabine Kehm said in a statement: "We are and remain confident that Michael will pull through and will wake up. There sometimes are small, encouraging signs, but we also know that this is the time to be very patient.

"Michael has suffered severe injuries. It is very hard to comprehend for all of us that Michael, who had overcome a lot of precarious situations in the past, has been hurt so terribly in such a banal situation.

It was clear from the start that this will be a long and hard fight for Michael. We are taking this fight on together with the team of doctors, whom we fully trust.

"The length of the process is not the important part for us."

The encouraging statement comes just five days after doctors said hopes of the 45-year-old racing driver making a recovery appeared "very slim" and that "only a miracle can save him".

Kehm added: "It is heart-warming to see how much sympathy his family is shown and I can say that the family is extremely grateful for it. However, it should not be forgotten that Michael's family is dealing with an extremely intimate and fragile situation.

"And I would like to remind all of us that Michael has always actively kept his family out of the public eye and consequently protected their private lives.

"We try to channel all the energies we have toward Michael and we firmly believe that this will help him.

"And we believe that he will also win this fight."