Next year's Tour of Germany has been cancelled following the latest spate of cyclists testing positive for drugs, the BBC reports.
In a statement to the press, organisers, said: "Due to the current developments in professional cycling we are no longer in a position to successfully finance and market the event”.
The news comes a day after Austria's Bernhard Kohl admitted to taking Cera, a version of blood booster EPO, during this year's Tour de France. Germany's Stefan Schumacher, plus Leonardo Piepoli and Riccardo Ricco, have also failed Cera tests.
The BBC reports that as a result two main national broadcasters in Germany have now decided to give up live coverage of the Tour de France next year.
Fritz Raff, chairman of public broadcaster ARD, told the BBC "The sporting value of the Tour de France has dropped considerably due to the many doping cases. The value of the broadcast has similarly decreased."
ARD and fellow public network ZDF cut short their live coverage of the 2007 Tour de France after German rider Patrik Sinkewitz tested positive before resuming their broadcasts this year.
