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Leading Australian riders Ben O'Connor and Chris Harper have endured crashes at the Tour of the Alps, but with very different results.

Ben O'Connor has delivered a remarkable comeback ride after a crash at the Tour of the Alps to keep himself in contention to win the prestigious week-long race.

But his fellow Australian Chris Harper, who took a tumble at the same spot on a descent from the Passo del Vetriolo in northern Italy on Thursday's fourth stage was not so fortunate, with his injuries forcing the Team Jayco AlUla stalwart to abandon the race.

O'Connor, spearhead of French team Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale, was left bamboozled by the strange crash about 25km from the finish in Borgo Valsugana.

He said the spill happened when he couldn't distinguish between a kerb and the road on a high-speed bend because "they were the same colour".

Harper took the first fall, crashing on his right shoulder and ploughing head-first into a lamp post which forced him to pull out of the race.

He was conscious when treated by team medics.

O'Connor, though, was able to remount and rejoined the leading pack while suffering a cut to his face and hand.

He still had enough strength at the finish to launch an attack, coming third behind Britain's Simon Carr (EF Education-EasyPost) and his Australian compatriot Michael Storer (Tudor).

"The road looks the same, you couldn't see the kerb. It is the same colour and I just took it," O'Connor said of his spill.

"It wasn't until I got to the barrier that I was like 'f***' and jumped.

"I'm fine, I just made an error in this fast descent. I really didn't see the end of the corner.

"It's a bit annoying but I was still third today and took some more seconds in the general classification.

"I can be pleased with how it went, the legs were really good all day, just in the end after the crash my body was a bit shaken, but I'm OK."

O'Connor's display pushed him to second overall, just 38 seconds behind Lidl-Trek's Spanish star Juan Pedro Lopez, who hailed the fighting spirit of the Australian.

The West Australian, a stage winner in the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia in recent years, has been in great form in 2024, having missed out on victory in the UAE Tour by just two seconds.

It would, though, be a tall order for a beaten-up rider to prevail on Friday's final stage around Levico Terme, which features two category one ascents of the Palu del Fersina.