Barloworld will be withdrawing their sponsorship from cycling following the Tour De France event in which team member Moises Duenas had tested positive for EPO.

Barloworld head of corporate marketing, Chris Fisher, said, “We consistently drive the values of our business through the team.

“Team Barloworld has a zero tolerance policy towards doping which has been constantly communicated to the riders - we have to act on this policy and as such we will all have to live with the long term consequences of one individual’s action.”

From Espnstar.com:

“This incident has a negative impact on Barloworld and our brand principals, which our board has a duty to protect.

“To say that we are disappointed would be an understatement. Cycling has been overshadowed for some time with doping issues which have negatively affected the reputation of the sport.

“Whilst we have continued to operate within this environment we have always made our position clear on drug use and have acted accordingly.”

Although Barloworld are withdrawing from the sponsorship, they added that they will honour contractual obligations until the end of the 2008 race.

Duenas returned a positive ‘A’ sample after the fourth stage of the 2008 Tour de France race.