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Hushovd numbed by Norway tragedy
World champion Thor Hushovd and fellow Norwegian Edvald Boasson Hagen struggled to concentrate on Saturday’s penultimate stage of the Tour de France after at least 92 people died in gun and bomb attacks in their homeland.
World champion Thor Hushovd and fellow Norwegian Edvald Boasson Hagen struggled to concentrate on Saturday’s penultimate stage of the Tour de France after at least 92 people died in gun and bomb attacks in their homeland.
“My mind is in Norway. It’s hard to think about racing when in real life things like this happen. It’s hard mentally,” said Hushovd, who had worn the leader’s yellow jersey for several stages of this year’s race, after the 42.4-km individual time trial in Grenoble. “I’m looking forward to the end of the Tour. It’s scary, it’s a lot of emotion and sadness. We didn’t believe it could happen. It can happen anywhere and to anybody.”
Most of those who died on Friday were young people gunned down on a tiny forested holiday island that was hosting the annual summer camp for the youth wing of Norway’s ruling Labour party. A 32-year-old Norwegian was arrested on the island and also charged with the bombing of Oslo’s government district that killed seven people earlier.
