Vacansoleil's Thomas de Gendt won today's 206 kilometer third stage of the Circuit de Lorraine, beating Saur Sojasun's Julien Simon to the line. Following two days for the sprinters, the stage between Chateau-Salins and Saint-Die-des-Vosges saw the peloton take in five categorized climbs, and saw the Belgian break the French winning streak in the race on home soil.
Tomorrow's ride from Baccarat to Rehlingen will again see the battle for the overall, with four categorized climbs on the scheduled 175.5 journey. The final climb of the day, the category one rated Cote de Siersburg, is situated less that 10 kilometers from the finish.