Sven Nys and Belgian broadband supplier Telenet, the director and main sponsor, respectively, of the Telenet Baloise Lions cyclocross team, have parted ways after the 2020 season.

Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad reported on its website Monday that a Telenet spokesperson said, "We decided to terminate the contract." Meanwhile, the paper said Nys suggested that the decision was his when he said in a press release that the team would take a new direction in 2021.

"Telenet has sponsored this team for more than 10 years and we want to introduce innovative methods starting in 2021," Nys said on Sunday.

"In doing so, we want to approach the media rights of the teams and riders in a different way and approach our work with our team partners in a different way," the two-time world champion continued.

"Exclusive partnerships with telecommunications and media companies like Telenet no longer fit that bill.

"We still have long-term contracts with many riders, such as Toon Arts and Lars van der Haar, but at the same time we will continue to focus on younger riders, such as Tibau (Sven's son and Junior European Champion Nice), who will become an under-23 rider next year. We will also continue to focus on younger riders, such as Tibau (Sven's son, Junior European Champion Nice) who will be under 23 next year.

"We will also further expand the operation of the Sven Nys Academy," Nys added, explaining that in the past two years the academy has placed more than 1,000 children between the ages of 7 and 14 on bikes.

Telenet is currently also the main sponsor of the UCI Cyclocross World Cup, and it is not yet clear if the sponsorship will continue for the 2020/21 series, where the UCI has proposed that the competition be 16 rounds instead of the current nine.