Being a strong climber and a fast finisher, Moreno Hofland was one of the favourites for today's stage of the Tour of Beijing. The Dutchman was in great position for the sprint but faded back to fourth as he ran out of legs in the finale.

Belkin Pro Cycling TEAM sprinter Moreno Hofland placed fourth in the third stage of the Tour of Beijing behind sprint winner Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Sharp). Belgian Philippe Gilbert maintained the overall lead over the 176 kilometres.

After the smog yesterday, the riders woke up under a bright blue sky. With the smog gone, the they fired their guns.
 

"The weather was clear but fresh. At the start, it was only 9°C, but rose up to about 15 degrees," Sports Director Nico Verhoeven explained.

"It was quite hard from the start and after a while, six men got a gap and went away. It was a classic beginning of a hilly stage because when the leaders had four minutes, BMC began to chase."

The sprint teams saw an opportunity and closed the gap to the leaders, which was good for Belkin's sprinter Moreno Hofland.

"BMC largely closed the gap to the leaders. Giant- Shimano took over and it became a bunch sprint," Verhoeven continued. "Moreno did well but in the final metres he was fighting against his legs. We are now deep into October and you notice that riders are counting down the days left.

"We will have two more good days here, then a part of this team leaves for Hainan.”
 

Hofland mingled for the sprint with a good starting position for a win.

“I was placed very well in the last hundred metres, but the last 50 meters were just too much," said Hofland. "I came out in the wind and I felt that my legs were broken. I just didn't have enough strength to turn them. I defended my fourth position overall and finished fourth, and I'm happy with that."

Tomorrow the Tour of Beijing continues its way with the queen stage to Mentougou Miaofeng Mountain. In the 157-km stage, the riders have to tame two mountains of the hardest category.