Chris Froome powered into the overall race lead at the Tour de France after a grandstand finish to stage three on the Mur de Huy.

Froome hit the front to take it up on the famous Belgian climb, securing a sensational second place on the stage but moving into the race lead by a single second courtesy of time bonuses on the line.

The yellow jersey was the reward for a committed performance from Team Sky during a dramatic stage which featured crashes, cross-winds and hard climbs.

Froome was never out of the front positions during the 159.5-kilometre test which saw the race move from Holland into Belgium. The Brit accelerated hard on the final third-category climb and his late effort saw him distance a number of chief rivals.

Crossing the line in the same second as stage winner Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha), Team Sky’s leader picked up an additional four bonus seconds to narrowly edge out Tony Martin (Etixx – Quick-Step) in the battle for the maillot jaune.

After the stage a thrilled Froome said: "It’s an amazing feeling to be back in yellow. If you’d have told me this morning I’d be in the jersey, I wouldn't have believed you, but it’s amazing. Especially on a day like this which had a punchy climb in the final. That isn't normally my kind of thing – I'm better on longer climbs – so I was really surprised to see the gaps open up like they did. I knew there would be gaps - but I didn't expect them to be as significant as they were and allow me to get into yellow.

"I've got my team-mates to thank for the massive effort they put in. They turned themselves inside out to keep me near the front through the trickiest parts of the race. It was treacherous out there - we were up and down, left and right, and obviously there were the crashes as well. My team did a fantastic job and I couldn’t be happier with them.

"It’s never too early to go into yellow, and I’d much rather be in this position than having to make up time on my rivals. We’re going to take it one day at a time now. Tomorrow we’ve got the cobbles so we’ll just have to manage that as well as we can. Something massive has happened every day so far and a lot of time gaps have opened up. I’m not banking on anything at this point and I just hope to get through these next few days with no major issues.

"I think the Mur de Huy is typically the climb for punchy types of climbers. That's why it's been a great performance by Purito. I expected it and I was marking him.

"I couldn't be happier. It's an amazing feeling to be back in yellow after the disappointment I had last year. I didn't expect to lead the race so early. I don't know how much we can read the race through a one-kilometer long climb but it's a good position to be in.

"The yellow jersey isn't a burden. It's a great place to be in ahead of the cobblestones. It'll elevate the whole team. I'll approach the pavés the same way as in the first few days. We start from zero every single stage until we reach the mountains. We just race the best we can every day.

"I'm glad I look calm from the outside but it's very nervous. Everyone tries to do the job for their team leader. It's a big battle for positioning. I thank my team for keeping me at the front. I don't have the burden to looking for positioning myself.

"I definitely wouldn't say that I'm the strongest, it's too early for saying that. We've seen so many changes already since the beginning of the Tour."

Earlier Team Sky collectively avoided a huge pile-up as an increase in pace ahead of the Cote de Bohissau caused a huge crash in the bunch. With a number of riders, including leader Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing), hitting the deck at speed the race was briefly neutralised, before being halted by the commissaires.

After 10 minutes the action resumed with a neutralised ascent of the fourth-category climb. With 50km to go racing began, and 10km later the action intensified once more as the race split in the cross-winds.

Geraint Thomas (who now sits ninth overall, 1:03 back) and Nicolas Roche pushed hard to shut down a select move after Tinkoff-Saxo upped the pace, with the peloton splitting in half behind briefly behind.

With a barrage of late climbs to overcome Froome had constant protection from his Team Sky team-mates, Richie Porte, Leopold König and Pete Kennaugh upping the pace on the Cote d’Ereffe.

After taking an early lead Froome was keen to put the day's performance into perspective, adding: "It’s very early days. That climb was only 1km long and I don’t think you can read too much into it. We’ve still got a long way to Paris. Every stage during this first week is like a one-day classic and the whole race could get turned on its head on the cobbles tomorrow, so let’s see what happens."

Froome also addressed the halting of the stage after a nasty crash caused the race's medical staff to be temporarily held up.

"I support the decision of the commissaires – that was the decision they took on the road for safety reasons – to get medical attention to the riders. It was a bit confusing out there at first, and my sympathy goes out to all those guys involved in the crashes."

Tuesday's stage four sees the race hit the cobbles, with Team Principal Dave Brailsford pointing to the tactical advantages of leading the race. "The support cars are going to be essential tomorrow and everybody likes to have the highest position in the convoy," he explained. "Given the nature of the race, it's a great time to have the yellow jersey. Where we go from there, we'll have to wait and see. We're taking things one day at a time right now, but this is a great result for us today.

“We had identified specific jobs for everybody at very specific sections, and they all duly delivered. We worked back from G [Geraint Thomas] dropping Froomey off on the climb, and then we looked at the climb and worked it out. We set out this morning with quite a clear plan, and that was it. Everybody did their job at exactly the right time.”

“[It was] a three minute effort, [we worked out] how to ride it optimally, and he just did his own thing. I think he’s a little bit frustrated that he didn’t go a bit sooner, because I think he wanted to win it.

“It’s early doors and it’s nice to get your nose in front, but it’s a bit like scoring a goal in football and then you’re really vulnerable for the next five minutes afterwards. I’d say we’re pretty vulnerable right now, that would be my message to this lot."