From the Top: How Matthew Keenan found his voice
In this episode of From the Top we continue our theme of individual icons within the sport and hear the story of Matthew Keenan, a man who is slowly but surely becoming the new voice of cycling. Three years ago he took over the highest job in cycling commentary when he and Robbie McEwen replaced Paul Sherwen and Phil Liggett as the host announcers for the Tour de France.
The word “passion” can often be used as a shortcut for people to describe how strongly they feel about something, but true passion, the kind Matt Keenan demonstrates for cycling and commentary, is built in increments – decades of it – ensuring everything he does goes towards what he’s trying to achieve.
Those who know Matt personally will tell you that while he’s never short of work, he’s incredibly humble and deflects away from talking about himself. His story of going from aspiring pro cyclist, to local venue commentator, all the way to now being the Tour de France’s anchor commentator is surprisingly well documented (I suggest you go listen to Mitch Docker’s interview with Matt for a really good insight), so in this episode I reached out to various friends and people who influenced Matt throughout his career to add some other perspectives.
I’ve known and worked with Matt in various capacities for 10 years now and have always looked up to his professionalism, his knowledge, and his relentless, but patient pursuit of his craft.
This is his story.
Thank you to Ashley de Neef for composing the music for the show, as well as our producer Mal Bloedel.
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