Matthews just loves being green machine

MICHAEL Matthews was partying in Paris after a Tour de France green jersey triumph he hopes can inspire another generation of Aussie sprinters.

Matthews finished safely in a final stage sprint won by Dylan Groenewegen, while Chris Froome’s fourth Tour crown was cemented on Paris’ Champs Elysees.

Matthews walked onto the podium with the national flag around his shoulders as the first Australian to win the green jersey since Gold Coaster Robbie McEwen in 2006. He became the third Australian to win the green following McEwen and Baden Cooke.

“It’s really a dream come true to stand there with the green jersey,” the 26-year-old Matthews said. “I think I’ve worked really hard to get to this point and cycling in Aus- tralia has helped me also to get to this point,” Matthews said.

“Hopefully we can really enjoy it and we can even get better from it. What’s it been? Eleven years since an Aussie has won the green jersey? Hopefully we’ve ended that dry spell now.”

So overjoyed was the Canberra-born, Monaco resident that he had to be told to get off the podium.

“I was trying to soak it up as much as I could,” he said.

“I actually wanted to stay a little bit longer.”

While Matthews benefited from the early disqualification of world champion and fivetime green jersey winner Peter Sagan, along with crash victims Mark Cavendish and Marcel Kittel, his consistency made him a worthy winner of the race’s most prestigious jersey behind yellow.

The Aussie trailed German Kittel by 133 points after stage 11, but clawed his way back by hunting intermediate points on mountain stages, while winning two stages himself.

Matthews’ wife Kat said she knew her husband had it in him.

“He is a fighter. He was never going to give up,” she said. “I can’t even describe how proud I am of him.”

Matthews said he was motivated by good friend and Australian title contender Richie Porte, who crashed out of the Tour on stage 9.