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'Zero tolerance' Estonia mourns cyclist killed by drunk driverPosted: Monday July 21, 2003 10:40 AMTALLINN, Estonia (AP) -- Estonians expressed shock and outrage Monday over the death of cyclist Lauri Aus, killed by a drunk driver while training. Aus was struck from behind by a car traveling at high speed, and hurled 20 meters (yards) on a rural road in southern Estonia on Sunday. He died en route to the hospital, police spokeswoman Kadri Palta said. A breathalyzer showed the driver was "highly intoxicated," said Palta, adding the man was arrested and would remain in custody until at least Tuesday. If convicted of causing a fatality in a road accident, the suspect, whose name was not given, faces a maximum five years in jail. In France, Aus was remembered Monday with a minute of silence at the start of the 15th stage of the Tour de France. Aus, 32, was an eight-time Estonian champion and member of France's AG2R team. He was fifth at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and seventh at the 1997 World Championships in road racing. He raced in the Tour de France in 1997 and 2000. Estonian newspapers said Aus' death showed more must be done to improve road safety and fight drunken driving in this former Soviet republic, which has one of Europe's highest road fatality rates per capita. In 2002, about 220 people died and 2,800 were injured in traffic mishaps in a country of only 1.4 million people. "We can't get back Lauri Aus, a top cyclist and a wonderful human being," wrote Estonia's top daily newspaper, Postimees, in an editorial Monday. "Let's acknowledge that he was a victim of our society and mentality. How badly we need zero tolerance right now (for drunk driving)." A local cycling club, the Prusakov Bicycle Society, said it would hold a road race in honor of Aus, stopping in front of the main government building in Tallinn, the capital, to protest what it said was too lenient treatment of drunk drivers.
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