The third stage of the tour of Poyang Lake which consisted of 10 laps around Ai Xi lake for a total distance of 125 kilometers. Australia's Sam Volkers came in wearing the leader's blue jersey and he would still have it at the end of the day despite the challenges posed by a twisting route that saw a group of riders go down.

The third stage of the tour of Poyang Lake which consisted of 10 laps around Ai Xi lake for a total distance of 125 kilometers.

Similar to yesterday's stage, this circuit also features flat racing with no climbs and three sprints. However most of the route is on a narrow path around the lake, creating huge difficulties for cyclists looking to overtake. 

Those tight conditions result in a minor crash near the end of the first lap when ten riders go down. Luckily no one is injured and they get back in the saddle.

30 degree heat and strong wind off the lake does not make the riding any easier, but the route goes through a wooded area that shelters the racers and provides a good situation for sprinting. On the second last lap, Italy's Mattia Frapporti and Craig Evers of Australia emerge from the peloton and that sets up a furitous two man dash to the finish that would be won by Frapporti in a time of 2 hours 55 minutes and 4 seconds.

Overall, Evers' Aussie teammate Volkers does enough to retain the lead and the blue jersey while China's Zhou Keqiang gets to keep the pink shirt as the top Chinese rider.

The fourth stage of the tour took the riders to Jing De village.