Goss leads Paris-Nice after stage three

The 24-year-old won in a sprint that saw one of the pre-race favourites Peter Sagan (Liquigas) fall along with several other riders. Sagan was left with abrasions to his left arm and leg.

Goss (HTC-Highroad), who was second behind Kiwi Greg Henderson (Sky) in Monday's stage, replaced Belgian rider Thomas de Gendt (Vacansoleil) in the overall lead.

Goss, who has been in good form this season in both the Tour Down Under and the Tour of Oman, said that he had had to change his line of attack when he saw Sagan go down.

"This is my first win in Europe this season so it is an important one," said Goss, who has already shown his ability to compete at the top level with one stage of the Tour of Italy under his belt.

"My sprint was disrupted by Sagan's fall. I was two places behind him, and I saw him fall and I had to avoid him.

"I just put my head down and focussed on the finish line. Milan-Sanremo? That will depend on the course, and on the form of Mark Cavendish (his team-mate at HTC).

"As for the rest of the season? It will be a long one because I began in January and I am counting on competing in the world championships at the end of September.

"I will take a long break after the Paris-Roubaix with a view to returning for the second half of the season. Will I compete in the Tour de France? I would like to experience it that is for sure."

Cedric Pineau (FDJ), Blel Kadri (AG2R), Jussi Veikkanen (Omega Pharma-Lotto), Cyril Gautier (Europcar) and Romain Hardy (Bretagnge-Schuller) broke away early to open up a big advantage in perfect racing conditions, with mild temperatures, clear skies and little wind.

Their lead was slashed to three minutes with 50 kilometres remaining, then just over a minute with 30 kilometres to go.

After a category two climb near the end, it was down to a handful of seconds.

French rider Thomas Voeckler (Europcar) was the first to attack. He overtook four of the front five but Kadri stayed with him. However, they were both overtaken with five kilometres remaining.

Half a dozen Liquigas-Cannondale riders then moved to the front, looking to put Sagan in an ideal place to launch an attack over the final stretch.

Misjudging a tight turn, Sagan lost control, his front wheel knocking down another rider as he fell.

Belgian rider Gert Steegmans (Quick Step) crashed after taking a turn too wide. But the former Paris-Nice stage winner was able to continue after changing bikes.

Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step) changed a tire after a puncture near the end and just managed to catch up in time.

Argentina's Lucas Sebastian Haedo (Saxo Bank-Sungard) did not start after being knocked over by a police motorbike a day earlier. His team said he hurt his knee and needed stitches.

Wednesday's fourth stage is a 191km ride from Creches-sur-Saone to Belleville.

Stage 3: 202km, Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire to Nuits-Saint-Georges.

1 Matthew Goss (Aus) HTC-Highroad 5:16:48, 2 Heinrich Haussler (Aus) Garmin-Cervelo, 3 Denis Galimzyanov (Rus) Katusha, 4 Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil (Spa) Movistar, 5 Geraint Thomas (GBr) Sky, 6 Greg Henderson (NZl) Sky, 7 Anthony Ravard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale, 8 Francesco Gavazzi (Ita) Lampre-ISD, 9 Romain Feillu (Fra) Vacansoleil-DCM, 10 Valerio Agnoli (Ita) Liquigas-Cannondale.

General classification:

1 Matthew Goss (Aus) HTC-Highroad 14:22:34, 2 Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Vacansoleil-DCM 0:00:02, 3 Heinrich Haussler (Aus) Garmin-Cervelo 0:00:06, 4 Greg Henderson (NZl) Sky, 5 Denis Galimzyanov (Rus) Katusha 0:00:08, 6 Jérémy Roy (Fra) FDJ 0:00:09, 7 Tony Gallopin (Fra) Cofidis 0:00:10, 8 Cyril Gautier (Fra) Europcar 0:00:11, 9 Cédric Pineau (Fra) FDJ, 10 Jens Voigt (Ger) Leopard Trek 0:00:14.