Matthew Busche and Laurent Didier were sidelined recently with injuries sustained in independent incidents during competition.

Matthew Busche injured his left hand in a crash at the Mallorca Challenge on January 31, and the diagnosis was a scaphoid fracture of the wrist.

He underwent surgery last Friday in Basel, Switzerland that revealed an instable situation of the fracture.  As a result, Busche received a special screw and bone transplantation and he will be in a cast for six weeks.

Under normal circumstances Busche will be unable to train during this time. However, Trek Factory Racing’s doctors will attempt to make a special carbon cast after four weeks to accelerate his return to training, with the hope he can gain one or two weeks’ time.

After the six weeks he will undergo a CT scan to see if the bone transplantation was successful.

Busche’s return to competition will be a lengthy affair, and the team will work closely with his trainer to decide when he is able to resume normal training. Currently, he is recovering at his home in Spain.

Laurent Didier also sustained a left hand injury, a result of a crash in the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race on February 1.  Didier was diagnosed with a fracture of the fourth metacarpal bone and flown back to Europe where he underwent surgery in Basel this past Thursday.

The operation went smoothly and Didier received a plate and screws, allowing him to resume training on rollers in the next few days.  A special cast will also be constructed for Didier and he could be out on the road the following week.

Trek Factory Racing is monitoring Didier's situation with his trainer in the next weeks to determine where his training and form will be. His return to competition should be much more rapid but is still unknown at this time.