KevinK
07-19-2005, 03:45 PM
What a terribly sad thing to happen....My heart goes out to the families of the riders and to all who love competitive cycling.
Aussie woman cyclist killed
19/07/2005 12:50 - (SA)
Sydney/Zeulenroda - A car in Germany drove into Australia's national women's road cycling team, killing one cyclist and seriously injuring five, racing officials said.
The accident occurred one day before the start of the Tour of Thuringen while the Australian team was on a training ride on the route of the opening time trial stage near Zeulenroda, 80 kilometres south of Leipzig.
Their coach was following in the team car and was the first on the scene.
Mowed down
An 18-year-old driver who had just got her licence crossed onto the wrong side of the road and mowed down the cyclists.
"It was a runaway car with an 18-year-old driver," an official of the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) said while confirming that Amy Gillett, 29, was killed and five of her team-mates seriously injured.
Prime Minister John Howard on Tuesday expressed condolences to the family of the leading Australian cyclist and former Olympic rower.
"In every way we will help and if people need financial or other assistance it will be provided," Howard, who is visiting the United States, told Australia's ABC Radio.
The prime minister of the German state of Thuringen, Dieter Althaus, also expressed his condolences to Gillett's relatives and to the manager of her cycling team, Warren McDonalds.
Critical condition
Five other members of the national women's team were seriously injured in the accident and three are in a critical condition after being taken to hospital by helicopter.
Cycling Australia chief executive Graham Fredericks said Alexis Rhodes, 20, and Louise Yaxley, 23, were in a very serious condition. He said the family members of all the cyclists were on their way to Germany.
Fredericks said the AIS women's road cycling programme would be suspended. "It goes without saying that this programme will be wound down for a while now," he said.
"Our focus now is on the well-being of those athletes, to monitor them through their recovery process until they are well enough to travel back to Australia."
Tour of Thuringen organizer Christian Bergemann appeared distraught at an evening press conference to announce that the race would be postponed for a day to allow a memorial service to take place on the main square of Zeulenroda.
Adelaide-born Gillett won two gold medals in world junior rowing titles in 1993 and 1994 and was a member of the Australian women's eight which finished fifth in the Atlanta Games.
Her husband, Simon Gillett, is a two-time world champion rower. She was based in Novellara, Italy, for the European road racing summer season.
Gillett switched to cycling in 2000, and was a member of the Australian World Cup cycling teams in 2002 and 2003. She was ranked among the world's top 100 female cyclists and was tipped for a medal at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne next year.
http://www.news24.com/News24/Sport/More_Sport/0,,2-9-32_1739834,00.html
Kevin
Aussie woman cyclist killed
19/07/2005 12:50 - (SA)
Sydney/Zeulenroda - A car in Germany drove into Australia's national women's road cycling team, killing one cyclist and seriously injuring five, racing officials said.
The accident occurred one day before the start of the Tour of Thuringen while the Australian team was on a training ride on the route of the opening time trial stage near Zeulenroda, 80 kilometres south of Leipzig.
Their coach was following in the team car and was the first on the scene.
Mowed down
An 18-year-old driver who had just got her licence crossed onto the wrong side of the road and mowed down the cyclists.
"It was a runaway car with an 18-year-old driver," an official of the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) said while confirming that Amy Gillett, 29, was killed and five of her team-mates seriously injured.
Prime Minister John Howard on Tuesday expressed condolences to the family of the leading Australian cyclist and former Olympic rower.
"In every way we will help and if people need financial or other assistance it will be provided," Howard, who is visiting the United States, told Australia's ABC Radio.
The prime minister of the German state of Thuringen, Dieter Althaus, also expressed his condolences to Gillett's relatives and to the manager of her cycling team, Warren McDonalds.
Critical condition
Five other members of the national women's team were seriously injured in the accident and three are in a critical condition after being taken to hospital by helicopter.
Cycling Australia chief executive Graham Fredericks said Alexis Rhodes, 20, and Louise Yaxley, 23, were in a very serious condition. He said the family members of all the cyclists were on their way to Germany.
Fredericks said the AIS women's road cycling programme would be suspended. "It goes without saying that this programme will be wound down for a while now," he said.
"Our focus now is on the well-being of those athletes, to monitor them through their recovery process until they are well enough to travel back to Australia."
Tour of Thuringen organizer Christian Bergemann appeared distraught at an evening press conference to announce that the race would be postponed for a day to allow a memorial service to take place on the main square of Zeulenroda.
Adelaide-born Gillett won two gold medals in world junior rowing titles in 1993 and 1994 and was a member of the Australian women's eight which finished fifth in the Atlanta Games.
Her husband, Simon Gillett, is a two-time world champion rower. She was based in Novellara, Italy, for the European road racing summer season.
Gillett switched to cycling in 2000, and was a member of the Australian World Cup cycling teams in 2002 and 2003. She was ranked among the world's top 100 female cyclists and was tipped for a medal at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne next year.
http://www.news24.com/News24/Sport/More_Sport/0,,2-9-32_1739834,00.html
Kevin