In a flat stage that included a crash just outside the 3km mark, which crashed riders such as Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Sharp) and Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale), Peter Velits once again found himself in ideal position near the front of the peloton for the field sprint finish.
Velits finished 21st, while Sylvain Chavanel, who is currently ranked 3rd (+07") in the GC behind Fabian Cancellara (Radioshack-Nissan), also finished safely with the bunch.
A break of four, which attacked just 2.6km into the 196km stage, was caught just before the finish line on an uphill section.
Andre Greipel (Lotto-Belisol) overtook Matthew Goss (Orica-GreenEDGE) just meters before the finish for the victory. Juan Jose Haedo (SaxoBank) was 3rd.
