TORONTO -- Everybody knew it was coming, but there was always a faint hope for a stay of execution or maybe a change of legislation. No such luck. Earlier this week Player's made if official -- one of auto racing's longest and strongest sponsorships is ending in three months.

"This is a sad day for Canada and for motorsports in general," said Paul Tracy, one of the graduates and benefactors of Player's driver development program. "I don't think it's right, but I guess the government doesn't see it that way."

Tracy was referring to the ruling handed down by Canada's federal government in 1997 that banned tobacco companies from sports sponsorships.

"The federal government's legislation introduced a series of regulations and restrictions, pertaining to the tobacco industry, that bans sponsorship as of Oct. 1, 2003," said Bob Bexon, president and CEO of Imperial Tobacco, which makes several brands of cigarettes, including Player's.

"I regret to announce that the 2003 season will be the last for Player's."

	Paul Tracy won't be able to sport the famous Player's logo on his wing after Oct. 1.

The immediate repercussion is that CART is losing one of its top teams, Player's/Forsythe with Patrick Carpentier and Tracy. The longtime damage is incalculable because of all Player's contributions.

From 1961, when Player's first sponsored a Formula One race at Mosport, Canada, to sponsoring a sedan series and Formula Atlantics in the 1970s, to starting a Formula Atlantic team in 1993 to launching an Indy Lights operation in 1994 to starting a CART team in 1996, this company helped put Canadian drivers on the map.

"I can't imagine where a lot of us would be without Player's," said Carpentier, who took advantage of the driver development program and captured the Atlantic title for Player's in 1996 before joining the Champ Car team in 1998.

"Their program came along at the perfect time for me, and I was lucky enough people saw my potential and invested the time and money to refine my skills."

The Player's roster has included Jacques Villeneuve, David Empringham, Claude Bourbonnais, Alex Tagliani and the late Greg Moore.

"It made sense to get into the team side of the business rather than the event side," said Bexon, who watched Canadian beer Molson take the event side of racing in this country to new heights. "We also felt like a Canadian team should have Canadian drivers."

Villenueve's '95 CART title and Indy 500 victory helped elevate awareness of CART in Canada, and races in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal are now three of the series' largest, with the most passionate fans.

"Player's created so many opportunities for people, and they created motorsports in our country," said Tracy, the local favorite this weekend and the Champ Car standings leader going into Sunday's Molson Indy.

"They've done so many good things for Canada in general."

Carpentier, who like Tracy has a contract with Forsythe for 2004, said the notion that tobacco advertising at races influences young people to smoke is ludicrous.

"I grew up watching Ayrton Senna, and he made me want to be a race driver, not a smoker," said the native of Quebec of the F-1 great who drove the Marlboro McLaren at that time. "The fact he was sponsored by Marlboro didn't mean anything to me, and I sure didn't run out and start smoking."

Bexon said Player's will exhaust all avenues to try to return.

"It's 1-0 for them, but it's just the end of the first period," he said. "We're going to appeal and then go to the Supreme Court, if necessary, but it's going to be a long process."

Of course the unkindest cut of all could be if Tracy takes the championship. After Oct. 1, three races will remain, and Player's will not be allowed to advertise in them or even to celebrate.

And that's got a lot of Canadians smoking hot.