GoPro shares tumble on Schumacher injury blame

Shares of GoPro (GPRO) fell nearly 10 percent in afternoon trading Monday to close at $76.67 on a report that a company camera may be linked to the serious brain injury suffered by race-car driver Michael Schumacher in a skiing accident.

European racing commentator Jean-Louis Moncet raised the connection between GoPro and Schumacher's injury over the weekend, telling the Europe 1 radio station that "the problem for Michael was not the hit, but the mounting of the GoPro camera that he had on his helmet that injured his brain."

The racing legend was severely injured last December in the Alpine resort of Meribel, France. Schumacher fell during a run and hit his head on a rock, according to news reports, and has been fighting for his life since then.

Previous news reports have linked a camera to Schumacher's injury. The Telegraph reported in February that investigators were testing to see if a camera weakened Schumacher's helmet. But Moncet's comments over the weekend may have been the first to publicly link GoPro to the accident.

Schumacher's family has not spoken publicly about any GoPro connection. The company did not respond to requests for comment Monday.

There has been some confusion Monday about what exactly Moncet learned about Schumacher's recovery. According to news reports, Moncet said he had spoken to Schumacher's 15-year-old son, Mick, about the situation. But Moncet seemed to downplay any interview on Twitter. "Stop all speculation," he wrote Monday. "I say I saw Mic Schumacher, I don't say where, I don't say I talk with him or I did an interview with him. Clear?"

His comments were anything but clear. Still, shares of the camera maker fell as much as 13 percent early Monday before paring back to its recent loss.

The stock has been a market darling since its June initial public offering. The company priced the shares at $24, and they zoomed to more than $90 earlier this month.