Dutch rider Olav Kooij has won his third Tour of Britain stage in Beverley
It began in Beverley this morning
Dutchman Olav Kooij continued his perfect start to the Tour of Britain with a third straight win on stage three from Goole to Beverley.
The Jumbo-Visma rider - who is tackling the Tour of Britain for the first time - edged a bunched sprint finish to the 154.7 kilometre stage, which was the first of the event to be held in the East Riding of Yorkshire.
Kooij held off the challenge of compatriot Danny van Poppel (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Britain's Ethan Vernon outside Beverley racecourse to match Edvald Boasson Hagen's achievement of winning three successive stages in the 2009 event.
A three-man combined attack of Saint Piran's Alex Richardson, Harry Birchill and Jack Rootkin-Gray inside the final 40 kilometres had eventually reeled in the breakaway.
Nils Politt (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Britain's Matt Bostock (Bolton Equities Black Spoke) also pushed on before Wout van Aert and the Jumbo-Visma team worked to get Kooij into a position to strike for home.
Kooij leads the general classification standings ahead of Van Poppel and Max Kanter (Movistar), with Vernon in fourth.
Wednesday's fourth stage of the Tour of Britain runs over 166.6km from Sherwood Forest to Newark.