HAIKOU, China, Oct. 26 -- German rider Max Walscheid from Team Giant-Alpecin won a three-peat on the fifth stage beating his biggest opponent in Tour of Hainan on Wednesday.

The hot weather in Hainan and series of incidents forced many riders to drop out of the competition. The incidents also interfered the riding of the peloton which caught breakaways near the end of the ride.

Max Walscheid, the owner of yellow jersey and green jersey by now, was very lucky to escape from the fall bicycle event near the finish line, and defeated Rafael Andriato of Wilier Triestina-Southeast, who finished by a matter of inches.

One terrible accident near the terminus forced Lucas De Rossi, the rider from Delko Marseille Provence KTM to quit the ride, while Alexey Lutsenko of Astana became the new owner of polka-dot jersey for his Outstanding Performance on mountain roads.

"Yesterday I said the victory was never easy, and it was very close for me to lose the ride today. Though I am ahead centimeters to cross the finish line, but lucky it was enough to win," Walsheid said after the ride.

The fifth stage stretched from Danzhou to Changjiang, covering a total distance of 159.4 kilometers, and the next stage that scheduled on Thursday, will be a mountain ride from Changjiang to Wuzhishan, covering 197.2 kilometers.