Stage three proved to be the first time that Team Giant-Alpecin finished out of the podium places with Marcel Kittel finishing in seventh, and Nikias Arndt just behind in 12th.

The stage was all set for a bunch sprint after the final breakaway rider was swallowed up within the final five kilometres, and from here Team Giant-Alpecin hit the front with Kittel in tow. A tough ramp with just over one kilometre to race saw the team lose each other and saw a small group pull slightly clear of the front of the bunch containing Nikias.

This group was to be joined by the front of the peloton in the final few hundred metres as Matteo Pelucchi (IAM Cycling) pulled through for his second win in two days. Kittel fought back in the closing metres to get back into the top ten but ran out of room as he continued to make up places before the finish. By finishing at the front of the race Kittel did do enough to conserve his yellow jersey of race leader.

After the stage, coach Addy Engels gave his thoughts on the stage, saying: “Today was another good situation for us with a small breakaway getting up the road, and we took control behind. We were looking good together hitting the front as planned in the final kilometres but on the uphill section the guys lost each other heading into the corner with 1km to go.

“It was a tough finish to stay together on and with the fast downhill drag to the line he ran out of time to move up before the sprint. He did enough to keep the overall race lead though and we will look to tomorrow’s stage and make a plan for this now.”

“For us, I’m actually very disappointed because the team worked so hard and I couldn’t finish it off. I lost my team on the little climb before the last kilometre because someone came in between me and my leadout man," Kittel said. "Then I had to go all the way by myself until the last kilometre, then I was simply not strong enough anymore.

"Yesterday was unlucky, I won the first stage, and today I wanted more. That’s something that happens, it can’t be perfect every day. It’s also wrong to expect we’d win the first three stages in a row because the competition is high.  The only thing left now is to hope that tomorrow is maybe a sprint opportunity, but maybe not.

"I think I can be satisfied, I had a good start now, my first win since a long time, but of course I also really wanted to win yesterday and today. That didn’t work but I still have nice goals in front of me."

Tomorrow’s fourth stage contains three categorised climbs, but with the final 30km a flat, fast run to the finish the sprinters may have enough time to stay in contention for a shot at another stage win.