GERMAN LEADER, ANGELA MERKEL SUFFERS PELVIC INJURY WHILE SKIING

German Chancellor, Angela Merkel cracked her pelvis during a skiing
accident in the Swiss Alps and will have to cut back on her work
schedule for the next three weeks, her spokesman said Monday.
Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters the chancellor
suffered what she first thought was just a bruise to her left rear
pelvic area while cross-country skiing but doctors later determined it
was an "incomplete" bone fracture that will require her to rest for
three weeks."The doctors' orders are to lie down," Seibert said,
adding that she had cancelled a Wednesday visit to Warsaw, Poland.
Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel has also called off his trip
to Berlin which had been set for Thursday.
Merkel would continue to preside over Cabinet and government meetings,
using a walking aid to get around, he said.
Last week Merkel sent wishes for a speedy recovery to German Formula
One legend Michael Schumacher, who suffered a serious head injury
while downhill skiing in France.
Seibert noted that Merkel, 59, had been engaged in the more placid
pursuit of cross-country skiing and the fall had occurred "at low
speeds". He was unable to say if another person was involved.
The accident happened around Christmas during Merkel's annual ski trip
to the Engadin region in south-east Switzerland.