Michael Matthews took ninth place at the GP de Québec , encouraging even for those who had bet on him in Fantacycling . However, after the race won by Julian Alaphilippe , the Australian spoke about the drama he experienced in recent months, during which he even risked his life. During the altitude training camp in preparation for the Tour de France , the Australian showed signs of a pulmonary embolism that forced him to stop to avoid risks to his health and allow him to receive treatment: “The doctors told me that if I continued training for another day or two, I probably wouldn't survive,” Matthews said. “One day I trained at altitude as usual, the next day I was in the hospital. I was about a week and a half into my three-week training camp when I couldn't breathe anymore. I felt a sharp, stabbing pain in my chest. I continued training, thinking it was allergies. They were mowing the grass and I suffer particularly from it. The end of the training camp was approaching,” the Team Jayco AlUla rider continued. “I had to do some exercises, but I couldn't do a single one. I had a headache and when I rode uphill I fell off my bike. So I decided to go to the hospital. After tests and analyses, they discovered blood clots in my lungs. I am I stayed in the hospital for days and took blood thinners for three months."