CSC to end team sponsorship this year

By Stephen Farrand

GUBBIO, Italy (Reuters) - CSC has decided to end its sponsorship of the professional cycling team managed by former Tour de France winner Dane Bjarne Riis.

"Team CSC's current main sponsor, the Information Technology company CSC, is leaving professional cycling when its contract expires at the end of this year," the team said on Thursday.

"CSC indicated the decision reflects a shift in priorities as the company makes new investments to implement a strategic long-term growth plan," it added in a statement.

Cycling has been blighted by a series of doping scandals in recent years and last May CSC team manager Riis admitted to doping when he won the 1996 Tour de France.

But CSC said its eight-year sponsorship had been a success.

"Our involvement in the sport of cycling has been a positive and productive experience," said Henrik Bo Pedersen, the CSC executive responsible for overseeing the sponsorship.

"We will continue to support the team and exercise our sponsorship rights during the 2008 race season. At the same time, we are committed to helping the team secure a new title sponsor,"

The CSC team has won many high-profile races including the team prize in the last three editions of the season-long UCI ProTour series but Riis now has just a few months to find a new main sponsor for his team.