Danny van Poppel, who led Welsford in his sprint, was penalized. After letting go of his teammate in the final, the Dutchman clearly deviated from his trajectory, thus forcing his competitors, the Dane Tobias Lund Andresen (Picnic PostNL) and the German Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain-Victorious), to brake. Downgraded, Van Poppel finished in 118th place and received a yellow card.
Welsford, winner of three stages last year on the “Down Under”, strengthens his position as leader in the general classification and is 14 seconds ahead of Marit who climbs to second place. The Briton Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike) was dropped to third place, also 14 seconds behind the leader.
The six-day Tour Down Under will continue until Sunday. On Thursday, a hilly 147.5 kilometer stage between Norwood and Uraidla will be on the program.
