[SIZE=2][B]Lance Armstrong's former team Discovery is to disband at the end of the season after failing to find a new sponsor.
[/B] [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]Armstrong won a record seven Tours de France with the team, formed as US Postal Service in 1996.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Alberto Contador, who won this year's controversial race, will be one of 27 riders looking for new jobs.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"I had contacts with candidate sponsors but the situation in the sport is so bad that nobody wants to be involved with us," said manager Johan Bruyneel.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Tailwind Sports, which operated the team, has struggled to find new backers after a summer in which the sport has again been battered by doping controversies.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]The company was given notice in February that the Discovery Channel would not renew its sponsorship and were seeking a reported $45 million (?22.14m) for three years. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Full story: [URL]http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/6940614.stm[/URL][/SIZE]
[SIZE=2][SIZE=3]When a top team like Discovery can't find a backer, it says more than enough about the crisis cycling is in. Yes, doping has been going on for decades, but after the Tour, this is hitting rock bottom. Sad...[/SIZE] [/SIZE]