Thomas De Gendt (Lotto-Soudal) rode to victory on the third stage of the 2018 Volta a Catalunya, taking the overall race lead with it as he rode celebrating into the finish in Camprodón.
The Belgian rider was part of the escape of the day and managed to stay ahead until the last moment.
De Gendt made a move to the front with more than 20 kilometers to go and held on until the end to clinch the 199-kilometer (123-mile) stage.
The Lotto Soudal cyclist finished 20 second in front of the chasing peloton, earning a 23-second overall lead over Alejandro Valverde. South African Daryl Impey dropped to third overall, six seconds behind Valverde.
De Gendt said: ”I didn’t expect it. It was really difficult with so much headwind.”
Thursday’s fourth stage will take riders 170 kilometers (105 miles) from Llanars to La Molina.
https://youtu.be/0fgLv8rB76Q?t=2600
Volta a Catalunya 2018 – stage 3 results (Sant Cugat – Camprodón):
| 1 | Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal) | 4:14:48 |
| 2 | Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) | +20” |
| 3 | Silvio Herklotz (Burgos-BH) | ,, |
| 4 | Mathias Frank (AG2R La Mondiale) | ,, |
| 5 | Nairo Quintana (Movistar) | ,, |
| 6 | Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain-Merida) | ,, |
| 7 | Maximilian Schachmann (Quick-Step Floors) | ,, |
| 8 | Egan Bernal (Team Sky) | ,, |
| 9 | Matej Mohoric (Bahrain-Merida) | ,, |
| 10 | Bob Jungels (Quick-Step Floors) | ,, |
General classification after stage 3:
| 1 | Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal) | 12:34:54 |
| 2 | Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) | +23” |
| 3 | Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott) | +29” |
| 4 | Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) | ,, |
| 5 | Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ) | +31” |
| 6 | Jay McCarthy (Bora-hansgrohe) | +33” |
| 7 | Nairo Quintana (Movistar) | +35” |
| 8 | Matej Mohoric (Bahrain-Merida) | ,, |
| 9 | Bob Jungels (Quick-Step Floors) | ,, |
| 10 | Eduard Prades (Euskadi Basque Country-Murias) | ,, |
