Simon Gerrans and Steve Cummings both finished safely inside the leading chase pack on what proved to be a quiet day for Team Sky on stage three of the Paris-Nice.

It was Liquigas rider Peter Sagan who took the victory after sprinting clear of a six-man breakaway in the closing stages.

Joaquim Rodríguez (Katyusha) and Nicolas Roche (Ag2R) filled the remaining podium positions, and Jens Voigt's fourth-placed finish elevated him to the top of the overall standings.

Snowy conditions at the start of the day had forced the race organisers to shorten the stage by 53km, meaning the riders rolled out of St Yrieix la Perche instead of Saint Junien.

Yann Huguet (Skil-Shimano), Nikolas Maes (Quick Step) and Jürgen Roelandts (Omega Pharma-Lotto) formed the day's first major breakaway and still had a seven-minute gap with 81km remaining.

RadioShack eventually took the ascendancy at the front of the peloton and were aided by Caisse d'Epargne as they chipped away steadily at that advantage.

Huguet, Maes and Roelandts attempted to hold on valiantly but were eventually swept up with around 5km to go.

The bunch stayed together until Roche attacked on the final ascent up the Côte de la Martinie, just inside the 4km marker.

Five further riders were also able to break free and it was Sagan who proved the most powerful of that quintet in a hotly-contested sprint at the line.

Gerrans and Cummings both ended the day six seconds off the pace in 22nd and 37th positions respectively, with stage one winner Greg Henderson one minute 17 seconds down in 95th.