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August 18, 2004 10:20 pm

Cyclist Hamilton turns his luck around

By Sal Ruibal

USA TODAY

VOULIAGMENI, Greece — Tyler Hamilton couldn’t have had a worse year. His best friend — a golden retriever named Tugboat — died while Hamilton was racing in the Tour de France.

Not long after that loss, a back injury he suffered in an early stage crash forced him out of the Tour de France on the second mountain stage.

The man who had shown such courage in finishing the 2003 Tour in fourth place despite a painful broken collarbone was now embarrassed, fragile and tenuous, wondering if he should just walk away from the bike for the year.

On a sunny Wednesday on the southern coast of Greece, all that angst was washed away by Hamilton’s triumphant gold medal in the men’s individual time trial, a feat that not even Lance Armstrong has accomplished.

"Cycling is all about ups and downs," he said with the gold medal draped around his neck. "Sometimes it seems there are more downs. But I could come in last in every race this year and this win would erase all of that."

Hamilton placed Tugboat’s red dog tags in his time-trial helmet Wednesday and says he felt his old friend’s presence on the 30-mile course.

His big day was also huge for American cycling: Bobby Julich finished less than 30 seconds behind Hamilton for the bronze. In the women’s time trial, Dede Demet-Barry took a silver medal.

No medals were expected after Armstrong’s withdrawal. "We showed the world that the USA has a great future ahead," Hamilton said.

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