old star Mark Cavendish After his record-breaking victory the day before with 19th place, he played no role. German sprinter Phil Bauhaus took fourth place and Pascal Ackermann ninth.
The two-time champion continues to wear the yellow jersey for the first time in the general classification Tadej Pogacarwho remains 45 seconds ahead of Belgian time trial world champion Remco Evenepoel. Defending champion Jonas Vingegaard remains third, 50 seconds behind.
The next clash between the stars will take place on Friday in the first individual time trial. The 25.3-kilometre race will take place between Nuits-Saint-Georges, where Marcel Kittel triumphed in the sprint in 2017, and Gevrey-Chambertin. Apart from a small incline halfway through the course, the course is completely flat. (dpa)