Arnaud Démare fnished tenth in the third stage of Paris-Nice won by Australian Matthews (Orica-GreenEDGE) who also grabbed the yellow jersey. Though disappointed, the French champion managed to find the words to explain the difficulty of the sprints that have plagued him since the beginning of the season.

"Today there was a difference compared to the previous two days," he said. "We rode fast and everyone, I think, had sore legs. I thought it was going to perhaps change the nature of the sprint but finally it was as in the past days as it has been since the beginning of the season.

"It turns out that the level is very even and no team manages to take contracl. Instead of being stretched out, the peloton forms a ball and in the last meters, it becomes very tactical. This requires you to make the right decision rather than choosing the right wheel and wait but it is not easy. Suddenly I'm boxed in and I can not do the sprint. One day it is Greipel, another day it is Kristoff. It is hard to do things right."

Dmare shows no sign of annoyance. His team has done wellbut he also knows that this third stage was probably the last chance for him to win a stage this week. 

"Today, the approach of my team in the final was good but in the last 200 meters, I was in the wheel of Mickael Delage. He lacked the power to get back on track and to give me a chance to win.

On Thursday, Paris-Nice takes on a new face with a new finish at the summit of the Col de la Croix de Chaubouret (204 km).