Wiggins wins stage 3, takes overall lead at 2013 Tour of Britain

LONDON (AFP) — Home favorite Bradley Wiggins took control of the Tour of Britain after dominating the stage 3 time trial on Tuesday. Wiggins (Sky) clocked a time of 19:54.2 around the 16-kilometer course in northern England, leaving him 33 seconds ahead of teammate Ian Stannard in the overall standings.

“Admittedly it’s not been a great season up to now for one reason or another,” said Wiggins, who had a failed bid at the Giro d’Italia, but is now shaping up well for a tilt at the world championships in Florence, Italy, later this month. “But I’ve been training right through July and I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve gone round this course.”

Wiggins, who came into Tuesday’s stage in 12th position, added, “It was nice to do a performance like that after the last two days.

“To win these races … I’m not a great climber, so I had to get as much out of that time trial as possible. I had to take every second I could, really.”

New Zealander Jack Bauer (Garmin-Sharp) was third in the time trial, finishing 42 seconds short of Wiggins’ mark and behind Stannard.

Overnight leader Gerald Ciolek (MTN-Qhubeka) fell off the pace, clocking a 21:45.