The cyclists were waiting right after the start for the climb up to Cervenohorske sedlo on the first proper stage, where the Dutchman Mike Schuch and David Preyler from Austria went up the road, but their escape did not last long. After about 50 kilometres, French leader Gautherat had a mechanical problem after a minor collision with his rival and had to change his bike. However, it didn't slow him down as Schuch won the points atop second summit Sprite.
"Changing the bike was not a big problem for me, after the collision the bike somehow stopped working, so I changed it. I was coming into the finish from somewhere in tenth position, the guys from the team did a great job and I finished. It was a great race," said the talented French rider after the finish and praised his teammates for a great sprint.
Just before the halfway point of the race it started to rain heavily, which resulted in a mass crash for several riders near Dolni Moravice and also another major accident just before the finish. Pavel Novak, the best Czech in the overall standings so far, had to change his entire bike after the crash, lost out to the main peloton and dropped in the standings.
The riders accelerated and there was a lot of racing in the three circuits around Rymarov. The rainy weather lasted until the finish, where the sprint to the square was decided. Gautherat's teammates put him in an excellent position, which the leader managed to turn into another triumph - his second in as many days.
He was said to have lacked better legs to reach the podium. "It was very hectic and dangerous today and there were a lot of crashes, so I'm happy to be healthy at the finish. The final circuit itself is quite technical, and it's even worse in the wet.
"In the end, Milan (Kadlec) and I tried to start a sprint, but it fell in the corner and slowed us down, so we had to start again," said Toupalík.