It was a tricky finish for the third stage in Tirreno-Adriatico with a 5% twisty ramp to the finish line, and positioning was key leading into the final kilometer.

The battle for the front was everything as Stijn Devolder and Yaroslav Popovych made a huge effort to put Fabian Cancellara at the head of affairs. With a few hundred meters remaining Cancellara was in the top three, however, the effort to get there thwarted anything better than a fifth place as Greg van Avermaet (BMC) launched his sprint early and held on to take the win.

“I wanted to have a try, but it was such big chaos in the end, and I did what I could,”Cancellara explained. “Popo [Yaroslav Popovych] did a big turn, and Stijn too, to bring me from 2k to 1k, and I paid for that – really I just survived the 5th place.  When you can stay at the front just behind the riders at the end it’s different then when you have to move up and I paid for that a bit.  I moved from far behind - took a big risk - and at the end I was there but on the steep ramp it was getting a bit slower but I was so blocked there I couldn’t really go right or left.  In the end it’s okay like this.  It was a tricky finale, and I gave it my best shot.”

Yaroslav Popovych was caught in a big crash in yesterday’s stage, and despite feeling its effects today he was still mixing it up in the finale, doing what he does best.

It was typical for this self-sacrificing Ukranian, who race after race throws all his energy into his teammates. Often, he is rarely noticed since his hard work comes early in races, unseen by TV cameras, and seldom mentioned by commentators. 

“I feel much better than yesterday right after the race. I felt some pain at the beginning of the race, but I just made myself be at the front to put my mindset in a different place,”Popo said, shrugging off his discomfort.

“Fabian lost some positions in the last two roundabouts and Stijn brought him back up to me,” he added, describing the final few hectic kilometers. “I was there to wait for him and then brought him more to the front.”

Despite Fabian Cancellara’s high finish, he still dropped one place in the overall standings to fourth as Greg van Avermaet’s sprung into leader’s jersey with his victory.

However, a 16-kilometer mountain summit finish looms for stage five – a day for the climbing prowess of Bauke Mollema - and Cancellara’s only focus in Tirreno-Adriatico is to win a stage. He was close in stage one, gave a gigantic effort today, and still has a few more opportunities, including the final 10-kilometer individual time trial on Tuesday.