In that situation, being something of a sprinter, I'd pull enough to help, up to what I can do, but not so much as to blow up. I'd obviously contest the sprint. My short pulls are balanced by the fact that they have numbers. They have their chance to attack in a way that I'd be dropped, and I have my chance to best them in a sprint if I manage to hang on.

All you can do is what you can do, and three is better than two until the end, even if the third isn't pulling very much. If there are two guys, regardless of the team situation, who are good TT'ers with me as a sprinter, then they should know that they need to shed me somewhere short of 200m to the line with some attacks. If they are from different teams and cannot coordinate enough to shed me, then that's their problem, not mine.

It's either attack until the sprinter is dropped, or quit working and return to the fold. Unless you can arrive at an agreement, there is no real way to get someone to do what he doesn't want to do. Everyone is looking for the advantage for themselves, so if they are going to work, you have to make the argument that for the break to stay away, everyone has to work.