CAPEL Dewi’s Stevie Williams is well placed in fourth place, six seconds off the lead after stage three of behind Tour de Suisse.

The Israel-Premier Tech rider was narrowly beaten into second place following a challenging uphill finish on yesterday’s stage.

The 27-year-old said: “I gave it a good go, a really good go. But on a finish like that, whoever is the strongest wins, so I can’t complain.”

It was Lidl–Trek’s Thibau Nuys who got the better of Williams following an undulating end to Monday’s stage into Rüschlikon.

Three categorized and four uncategorized climbs – including an 800-meter, 7.2% ramp to the finish line –delivered the much-anticipated finale.

The La Flèche Wallonne winner added: “Yeah it was a tough final, really tough actually, especially the last 10 kilometers. I put myself in an excellent position coming into the final climb.”

The Welshman was superbly assisted by all six of his teammates throughout. German pair Pascal Ackermann and Michael Schwaszmann looked after him in the flatter part of the stage, before Marco Frigo and Jake Stewart provided invaluable support and positioning on the first climbs.

“The guys did a great job all day keeping me out of trouble,” added Williams. “So I’m really grateful for that.

“I’m happy with second, as much as I wanted to win, so nevertheless it’s a good day.”

Today the riders travel from Rüschlikon to a mountain top finish at the Gotthard Pass. The elevation gain of the 171 kilometres route adds up to 3,551 metres, while the last 21.1 kilometres are averaging 5.6%.