 Kessler at theRund um den Henninger Turm 2005 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Matthias Kessler |
| Born | (1979-05-16)16 May 1979 (age 46) Nuremberg,Germany |
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) |
| Weight | 70 kg (154 lb) |
| Team information | |
| Current team | Retired |
| Discipline | Road |
| Role | Rider |
| Rider type | All-rounder |
| Professional teams | |
| 2000–2006 | Team Telekom |
| 2007 | Astana |
| Major wins | |
Grand Tours
| |
Matthias Kessler (born 16 May 1979 inNuremberg) is a German former professionalroad racing cyclist who competed from 2000 to 2007 forTeam Telekom andAstana.
Kessler debuted as a pro during the 2000 season after becoming German under 23 champion in 1999, a year in which he also took the bronze medal in the under 23cycling world championships. Despite the fact that he has only 3 wins in his palmarès, which includes two consecutive victories at theGran Premio Miguel Induráin andLUK-Cup of 2003, he is seen as an outsider for theArdennes classic races.
InGrand Tours, Kessler won Stage 3 of the2006 Tour de France in a late breakaway. The previous day on Stage 2, he was caught by the peloton less than 50 meters from the finish line. He had to abandon the2004 Tour de France after a serious and spectacular fall caused him severe injuries, even though he managed to end the stage. In the2005 Tour de France, he was part of the T-Mobile line-up and almost got a win atMende.
Kessler is known for riding with his jersey open and also for wearing an undershirt intentionally torn for better cooling. In January 2010, he had a collision with a cat while on a training ride in Mallorca, Spain, and was left in a critical condition with severe head injuries.[1]
On 27 June 2007 Kessler was suspended by Astana for failing a drugs test fortestosterone taken inCharleroi in April 2007.[2] He was fired from the team on 13 July.[3] Later named as a recipient of ablood transfusion at theUniversity of Freiburg along with teammatesAndreas Klöden andPatrick Sinkewitz during the2006 Tour de France.
Road race, National Under-23 Road Championships
Road race,UCI Under-23 Road World Championships| Grand Tour | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Giro d'Italia | — | 23 | 25 | — | — | 25 | 72 |
 Tour de France | — | — | — | 49 | DNF | 57 | 53 |
 Vuelta a España | 102 | — | 47 | — | — | — | — |
| — | Did not compete |
|---|---|
| DNF | Did not finish |
