While he barely flinches at hurtling towards hairpin bends at break-neck speeds, word is that three times World Formula One Champion Michael Schumacher was so overwhelmed at the birth of his first child, daughter Gina Marie, he thought he would faint.

Michael's reputation as an arrogant and volatile driver, who will stop at nothing to win, often precedes him. The sportsman has always been fuelled by burning ambition. "It is true my life is geared to winning. It has always been so," he admits.

Born in 1969 in a village near Cologne, Germany, the young prodigy grew up on racing. Aged just four he was notching up circuits at the go-kart track near his family home, and by the time he was 18 he was European Champion. But despite his early introduction to the sport, he wasn't forced into it by his parents unlike many of today's young sporting stars. "My overriding memory of childhood is having the freedom to decide which way to go in life and having my parents' support," he told HELLO!.

Michael made his Formula One debut in 1991, and just 12 months later had won his first Grand Prix, driving for the Benetton team. In his first full season he finished third in the championship and in the years to come, was to establish himself firmly at the top of the Formula One tree, winning the World Championship in 1994, 1995 and 2000.

In 1995, he left Benetton and signed a multi-million deal with Ferrari which, before their new top driver's arrival, had not scooped a championship title in 21 years. Kitted out in the team's daredevil red, Michael has brought back glamour and fame to the success-starved legendary Italian marque.

Michael met his wife Corinna through a former team-mate, Heinz Harald Frentzen, who was Corinna's boyfriend at the time. When that relationship came to an end, Michael seized his opportunity and five years later he and Corinna were married in August 1995.

Besieged by constant media attention and the pressures of fame, "Schuey" takes refuge in his family. He eschews the jet-set life for one of tranquillity in his home in the Swiss countryside, near Lake Geneva. Away from the track, the devoted father to Gina, born in 1997, and Mick, who arrived two years later, is definitely "family-orientated". His little girl was particularly concerned when the race ace broke his leg in an accident at the British Grand Prix in 1999. "Granddaddy, we need to buy some new brakes for my daddy," she informed Michael's dad.

Formula One's fastest acknowledges that his huge income breeds jealousy. The German star sparks controversy wherever he goes and has had numerous flare-ups with other drivers, both on and off the track even with his younger brother Ralf.

Despite the animosity, Michael is universally regarded as the most talented driver of his generation. Former world champion, Jacques Villeneuve, perhaps summed up Michael's dominance of the sport best after losing to him at the Spanish Grand Prix in 1996: "He has set an amazing standard which we all have to try to follow. I cannot imagine a harder challenge."

At the end of the 2006 season, the seven-time world champion retired from racing, with many leading lights within the sport hailing him as the greatest Formula One driver ever. Since his retirement the billionaire sportsman has been busy with a multitude of charity projects, including supporting UNESCO, building schools in Senegal and Sarajevo, and supporting homeless children in Peru. It is estimated that his charitable donations total more than $50 million. Michael is also a high-profile supporter of a campaign to make roads safer.