After life-threatening crashes and illness, Matthews is ready for the Tour de France: 'I’m giving it my all'

Michael Matthews is gearing up for his ninth Tour de France, which is already a major achievement for the 35-year-old Australian. The veteran rider from Jayco AlUla suffered two career- and even life-threatening injuries last year, and it is precisely those injuries that make him a dangerous dark horse for the Tour.

For those who aren’t fully familiar with Matthews’ story over the past twelve months: Matthews was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism around the summer of 2025. This sudden blockage of a blood vessel in the lungs can be fatal, but the medical staff at Jayco AlUla detected the problem just in time.

"The doctors said that if I had done the same training for another two to three days at high altitude, I probably wouldn't have survived," Matthews said when he returned to racing in September 2025. He performed exceptionally well that fall, but he also kicked himself for having dismissed his symptoms as allergies throughout the summer.

Those turbulent months led to a two-year contract extension for Matthews, who said he came to appreciate cycling even more when he was on the verge of having to say goodbye to the sport. Looking ahead to 2026, he spoke of“a second chance.” “I’m more motivated than ever. I’m still that guy who attacks my teammates in training and acts crazy, because I still love cycling.”

Matthews, who had already won one or more stages in all three Grand Tours, got off to an excellent start in 2026 with a victory in the Gran Premio Castellón on Mallorca, but then disaster struck again in March. A violent collision with a fire truck caused extensive injuries: “An open fracture in my right arm, severed tendons in my thumb, and a broken left wrist and thumb,” he listed.

Matthews had to undergo surgery several times, and his spring season was cut short. And, as revealed in an interview for Australian TV, his career and life were once again hanging by a thread. “If things had gone just a little differently, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here right now. That’s very traumatic,” he said emotionally.

The fire truck suddenly appeared during a training session, leaving Matthews unable to brake or react. His face was “completely shattered” in the crash, with a fractured eye socket being the biggest concern. His wife said on TV: “When Michael arrived at the hospital, he said he was done with cycling. When the helicopter arrived at the hospital, I saw blood dripping onto his shoes.”

"The hardest crash I've ever had," said Matthews, who spent a long time on the rollers with both arms in casts and still can't move his left wrist properly. It was none other than Tadej Pogacar who helped Matthews get through it. “He called every day, even on race days. He told Michael he’d be attacking in the classics so he’d have something fun to watch. From that moment on, Michael started watching more,” said Katarina, Matthews’ wife.

From sudden bouts of crying during this difficult time, we fast-forward a few months to the Tour de Suisse. There, IDL Pro Cycling spoke with Matthews, who had successfully made his comeback in June at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and then went on to the Tour de Suisse. “In the Auvergne, I got tired, and with the high mountains coming up, we decided to pull out early. Here, I want to finish the race.”

It worked out, although the Tour de Suisse, with Pogacar in the race, turned out to be so grueling that competing for stage wins wasn’t yet an option. “I’ve made progress since the Auvergne, and hopefully this race will be another building block toward the Tour de France. I just need race days, because I’ve been training really hard—as hard as I could.”

"Training is one thing, racing is another," came the realistic assessment from the Tour de Suisse. But Matthews does indeed plan to be at the top of his game in the Tour. "I'm a little behind, but hopefully I can make progress faster than people expect. I'm giving it my all to make that progress as quickly as possible."

"Of course I'm fresher for the Tour, if you look at the number of race days. But I have trained very hard, so you have to find a balance there. I've seen on TV how tough the races have been this season, so I think it's actually an advantage that I haven't raced that much yet. I also hope to be a bit fresher mentally than the others."

It’s that mindset, that fresh perspective, and that unparalleled determination to keep going that make Matthews a threat in the Tour de France. “I’m seizing every opportunity with both hands, after everything I’ve been through over the past year. I’ve made great strides toward the big goals that lie ahead. I’m confident in the timeline I’ve set for myself and hope to be back at the top level soon.”