Tour de Suisse stage 3: Thibau Nys wins punchy sprint finish

Thibau Nys (Lidl-Trek) won stage 3 of the Tour de Suisse after the end of an uphill sprint to the line in Rüschlikon. The Belgian had been given a carpet ride through the final few hundred metres by rivals Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale and Wilco Kelderman (Visma-Lease a Bike), before making his move to take his seventh professional victory.

Earlier in the stage, a five-man breakaway had gone up the road and allowed a healthy gap, and it was Switzerland's Johan Jacobs (Movistar) who lasted the longest from this move. However, their hopes were always slim and with the break brought under control heading into the final two climbs, the peloton could contest the day's honours.

Some, like Valentin Paret-Peintre (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) and Brandon Rivera (Ineos Grenadiers), looked to make their mark, though each move was extinguished by a motivated peloton and heading into the final few kilometres, only Marc Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates) stood between the peloton and the stage win. With Paret-Peintre on the march, Hirschi's hopes were quelled and it was from the Frenchman's wheel that Kelderman looked to take advantage.

With a low cadence, Kelderman looked to take his attack to the line but in truth, the Dutchman always looked beatable, and so it proved. In the final 100 metres, Nys rounded the Visma-Lease a Bike climber to win the stage and take Lidl-Trek's 24th victory of the season.

Behind Nys, Israel-Premier Tech's Stephen Williams placed second and EF Education-EasyPost's Alberto Bettiol was forced to settle for third.

The Italian's spirits would be buoyed, though, when the new general classification standings were revealed. With race leader Yves Lampaert (Soudal Quick-Step) distanced in the finale, Bettiol now moves into the leader's yellow jersey and will take his lead into stage 4. It is another feather in the cap for the 30-year-old as he prepares for the Tour de France.

Behind Bettiol, the top five consists of Ethan Hayter (Ineos Grenadiers), Kelderman, Williams and João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates), all of whom are placed within nine seconds of the lead.

"It is so nice to show the good form of the last few weeks and I've been dreaming about this stage for a long time already. I was so disappointed after the crash in Gippingen [Grosser Preis des Kantons Aargau] and it was difficult to get over it, because I knew I was close to winning there," admitted an emotional Nys after the finish.

"From the race to the hotel, we did a recon of this stage and I tried to put my mind in the right direction and it all worked out. Yesterday I was struggling a lot, today as well, I was not feeling good on the bike and I had an annoying feeling the whole day, but the guys pulled me through it and I started to believe in it - it all worked out - [I'm] out of words."

Five-man breakaway allowed breathing room

Stage 3 of the Tour de Suisse was always going to be decided over the final 35km, in which three categorised climbs awaited to treat the puncheurs and provide ample opportunity to reel in any breakaway. As such, the battle for the day's break was not too contentious earlier in the stage.

Five riders were allowed to go clear after 7km of racing and within the break lay four riders from Switzerland. Panama's Roberto Carlos González (Corratec-Vini Fantini) was joined by the Swiss quartet of Fabian Lienhard (Groupama-FDJ), Johan Jacobs (Movistar), Christoph Janssen and Luca Jenni (both Swiss Cycling).

With their gap quickly allowed to expand, the race could take stock of the day's absentees. Gone from the peloton were Nairo Quintana of Movistar, who fractured his hand on Monday, and Emanuel Buchmann of Bora-Hansgrohe, who was suffering from a broken collarbone and hip.

In their absence, there was little to report from the first 100km of racing, in which the gap to the breakaway swelled to four minutes at one point, before Lotto Dstny and Jayco AlUla amassed at the front of the peloton to provide a semblance of control.

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On his right wrist, Johan Jacobs wears a pink wristband with the words '#rideforgino' in honour of his late compatriot

Their efforts brought the gap to the breakaway down to a little over a minute as the race entered the final 40km and neared the first categorised climb. It was at this point that the pace ratcheted up and the breakaway itself began to fracture. Lienhard was dropped, as were Janssen, Jenni and González, as Jacobs pushed on and looked to thwart the charging pack.

As Jacobs pushed on, the cameras focussed on his wrist which was adorned by a pink wristband in honour of the late Gino Mäder - a fitting tribute almost a year on from the youngster's death.

Read more: Tour de Suisse to honour Gino Mäder with KoM prize and memorial ride fundraiser

Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale ensure an uphill sprint for the win

With a little over 20km to ride, orders were given to EF Education-EasyPost to work and all of a sudden, a swarm of pink descended on the front of the peloton. Their aspirations for the stage were clear, a day after Alberto Bettiol's late attack on stage 2 had been squashed.

At the foot of the penultimate climb, the category 3 Aegst am Albis (2.6km at 6.5%), Jacobs' gap to the breakaway behind stood at only 7 seconds, such had been the turn of speed produced by Bettiol's teammates and the helpful hand of Lidl-Trek.

The man on the front for EF Education-EasyPost was recent Giro d'Italia stage winner Georg Steinhauser, the German shepherding Bettiol and fellow team leader Richard Carapaz. Sensing the danger that loomed, UAE Team Emirates and Ineos Grenadiers both made themselves known towards the head of the race.

Standing at 5.9% for 2km, the category 3 Albipass represented the final categorised climb and Ineos Grenadiers were the first to take the race by the scruff of its neck. Brandon Rivera was the initial aggressor but the Colombian was quickly left behind himself by Giro d'Italia stage winner Valentin Paret-Peintre. The Frenchman's acceleration drew Adam Yates of UAE Team Emirates into action, who closed down the gap over the top of the climb.

On the descent, Rivera's teammate Tom Pidcock decided to pile on the pressure and for a few bends, even the race motorbike could not get away from the flying Brit. That move came to an end in abrupt fashion as a mechanical appeared to halt his advance - a fault pointed out by the Italian Bettiol.

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Marc Hirschi was content with his performance after the line, admitting that he needed a companion or two to make a late move practical

With 3km to go, UAE Team Emirates' Marc Hirschi went all-in with an attack, drawing Alpecin-Deceuninck into a desperate chase. His advantage was soon opened to six seconds as he reached the bottom of the final descent, but Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale extinguished the gap as the road began to rise to the line.

With an uphill sprint on offer, it was no surprise to see Israel-Premier Tech's Stevie Williams to be right in the mix, just months after he won La Flèche Wallonne. Visma-Lease a Bike's Wilco Kelderman was another rider on the move but nobody could do anything to stop Thibau Nys' acceleration inside the final 100 metres.

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