Last month's Tour stage winner Laporte got off to a strong start in his 12 km race against the clock. He set the fastest time at the first intermediate point, but lost too much time in the second part of the race.

"Christophe rode a very good time trial. He has shown several times this year that he can do this well, so we knew he could compete for the win. Of course it's a shame he didn't win, but technically he did everything right", sports director Marc Reef said.

Laporte's third place in the time trial has moved him up to third place in the general classification. With a six-second gap, Reef is convinced that anything is still possible. "We are in a good position with Mick and Christophe, which certainly offers a perspective for the coming days. Hopefully, we can do well in tomorrow's tough gravel stage."