At 78 kilometers, the third stage is again rather short and offers Schurter and Stirnemann another opportunity to reach for the hoped-for stage win. Accordingly, the two also put themselves under pressure. Their aggressive pace uphill and downhill increasingly splits the field. Sauser and Kulhavy are able to keep up the pace, with Nicola Rohrbach and Daniel Geismayr fighting for the gap just behind them. Manuel Fumic and Henrique Avancini have to let go.

The two teams stay together until the end, leading to another sprint. Schurter crosses the finish line first, Kulhavy second - the decision is made a few meters behind. Stirnemann, who started the sprint a little too early, is caught by Sauser, who celebrates his second stage win in a row with Kulhavy. For Rohrbach and Geismayr, their efforts also paid off. They are rewarded with third place.

"That was another great day for us. We never expected to make up so much time on Fumic and Avancini on this stage," said a relaxed Sauser.

Although the Schurter/Stirnemann duo once again fell just short of victory, Schurter clearly enjoyed the duel. He gave Sauser a warm hug and laughingly congratulated him on his victory.

"That was one of the stages that suited Nino and me. So we were also aiming for victory here. In the end, I thought we had the win in the bag, but I couldn't hold on to the sprint against Sauser that we launched early on. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed today's ride against the two great racers," summarized Stirnemann.

The defending champions are getting back on track. Although overall victory is a long way off, Karl Platt and Urs Huber's sixth place on the stage shows an upward trend that at least gives hope of a stage win. Andri Frischknecht and Michiel Van der Heijden deliver another good race. They finished ninth today and Frischknecht hopes that "their legs will continue to turn so well over the next few days."

Spitz in old freshness

In the women's race, Esther Süss and Jennie Stenerhag don't want to rest on their nine-minute lead. "We didn't even try to sit in the peloton and wait, but rode as hard as we could," said Süss, explaining her tactics.

However, victory was not to be, as it went to Sabine Spitz and Robyn de Groot by just 0.2 seconds. The stitched laceration above her eye did not seem to affect Spitz in any way.

In the other categories, Olympic champion Jenny Rissveds and Thomas Frischknecht climb onto the podium for the fourth time - today with a very clear lead. Their toughest rivals are only 16 minutes behind in the overall standings.

In the Masters category, there is a new winning team for the first time: Former Tour de France riders Cadel Evans and George Hincapie also won in a sprint against Bart Brentjens and Abraao Azevedo. Overall, Evans and Hincapie are still in third place behind the Spaniards Tomi Misser and Ibon Zugasti.

Fourth day, fourth victory: that's how Bärti Bucher and Heinz Zoerweg's Epic progress can be described so far. The duo from Switzerland and Austria have extended their lead in the overall classification to around 40 minutes.

Outlook for stage four

The fourth stage with its 112 kilometers will certainly suit the big engine of Jaroslav Kulhavy and the routine of Sauser. If Fumic and Avancini want to maintain their slim lead of one minute and 20 seconds, they will have to keep up with their pursuers. The stage starts at Elandskloof, and follows through the Oak Valley to Elgin.