The day after the cancelled second stage, the riders were presented with a relatively easy course. In the last fifty kilometres, they had to tackle three categorised climbs, but these proved not to be difficult enough to create any major differences. In the final sprint, the yellow and black formation did not get involved in the battle.

"We knew in advance that this was a day where there would not be much for us to gain", sports director Jos van Emden said. "The climbs were not hard and steep enough to make a difference, so we just had to get through this day. The most important thing was that we crossed the finish line safely, and we succeeded. The next three days will be more important."

Tomorrow, there is a 20-kilometre individual time trial on the programme. De Vries (third), Viktória Chladoňová (eighth), Rosita Reijnhout (ninth) and Marion Bunel (eleventh) are well placed in the rankings. "We will do everything we can to finish as high as possible. There will certainly be time differences after tomorrow's time trial", said Van Emden.