It’s a reminder accidents can happen to the best of us — even when you’re one of Europe’s most powerful people.
“The German chancellor Angela Merkel has been injured in a skiing accident. Merkel fractured her pelvis in a skiing accident while on a cross country trip on her Christmas holiday.” (Via BBC)
Because we’re just finding out now, a writer for Bloomberg says this highlights the private nature of German politicians. “Whereas the U.S. president is accompanied by a pool of media wherever he goes, a German chancellor vacations without the public being told where she is and with no regular updates given of her movements.”
While Merkel's injuries aren’t serious, her spokesperson says she's under doctors' orders to rest for the next few weeks and will work home.
As The Wall Street Journal points out, this isn't unheard of. Several other German chancellors have run the country away from the office — while in the hospital for various injuries and surgeries.
But as The Guardian notes, there’s already been a perception that Merkel has increasingly withdrawn herself from the public eye, gaining her the nickname of Germany’s “invisible chancellor.”
News of her injury comes not long after fellow German, Formula One racer Michael Schumacher suffered a serious head injury during a skiing accident. He remains in stable, but critical condition. (Via CBS)
