M
Marty Wallace
Guest
16 H 03 - Matt White Was Supposed To Start At 5.17pm
Matt White who fractured his collarbone in an accident only a few hours
before the start of his first Tour de France. The Australian rider seems
cursed with bad luck. In 1999 he was due to make his Tour debut but his Vini
Caldirola team's invitation was withdrawn at the last minute. Since then he
has raced with the US Postal team for the past three years but never made
the Tour team.
Another interesting fact: Matt White's wife, Jane Saville, was disqualified
from the long distance walking event at the Sydney Olympics with just 300
meters to go because she was deemed to have broken from the correct walking
position. She was in the lead of the race and seemed assured of winning the
gold medal.
16 H 00 - O'Grady Comments On White's Accident
"I can't believe what happened," said his team-mate Stuart O'Grady who was
riding next to him at the time of the accident. "It was a freak accident.
'Whitey' was near the site of the time trial start and hit something. He
went flying over the bars and landed smack on his face. The poor guy!
"For a while we were hoping that it was just a cut to the face and that he
could still take the start. He was in the form of his life and really ready
to have a good race. For this to happen only a few hours before the start is
terrible!
Matt White who fractured his collarbone in an accident only a few hours
before the start of his first Tour de France. The Australian rider seems
cursed with bad luck. In 1999 he was due to make his Tour debut but his Vini
Caldirola team's invitation was withdrawn at the last minute. Since then he
has raced with the US Postal team for the past three years but never made
the Tour team.
Another interesting fact: Matt White's wife, Jane Saville, was disqualified
from the long distance walking event at the Sydney Olympics with just 300
meters to go because she was deemed to have broken from the correct walking
position. She was in the lead of the race and seemed assured of winning the
gold medal.
16 H 00 - O'Grady Comments On White's Accident
"I can't believe what happened," said his team-mate Stuart O'Grady who was
riding next to him at the time of the accident. "It was a freak accident.
'Whitey' was near the site of the time trial start and hit something. He
went flying over the bars and landed smack on his face. The poor guy!
"For a while we were hoping that it was just a cut to the face and that he
could still take the start. He was in the form of his life and really ready
to have a good race. For this to happen only a few hours before the start is
terrible!