Dimension Data has announced that Rolf Aldag, head of performance for the World Tour team, will leave the team at the end of the season.

The 51-year-old German joined the team at the end of 2015. He previously held management positions at Quick Step and T-Mobile, the latter of which later morphed into Team Columbia and HTC.

According to a Dimension Data team statement released on Monday, Aldag's departure is "a totally amicable step that was mutually decided upon with gratitude for the past and sincere wishes of good luck for the respective futures."

Team president Doug Ryder said, "Rolf's extensive knowledge of the sport, which he is always willing to share, his skillful engagement with partners, his implementation of systems and structures, as well as his belief in the team's core ideals--changing people's lives through cycling--make him a valued team storytelling He leaves as a member of the team. We wish Rolf and his family all the best in their future endeavors."

Aldag's parting words focused primarily on his memories of the team's goal of providing bicycles to people in Africa through the Qhubeka charity. [Handing out bikes to South African children at a training camp in Cape Town was one of the most moving and memorable moments of my career. So I will continue to be deeply supportive of the team's success, both on and off the bike."

While the team's philanthropy has been a huge success, Dimension Data has struggled to produce results in recent seasons, winning just seven races in 2018 and seven so far this season. This year in particular, Edvald Boasson Hagen and newcomer Giacomo Nizzolo have been heavily used in the group sprints as Mark Cavendish has struggled to recover from the Epstein-Barr virus he has suffered from the past two years.

Cavendish was diagnosed as medically recovered from the virus in May but was not selected for this year's Tour de France, and Ardagh has made no secret of his displeasure with the decision.

"It's no secret that I wanted Cavendish to come," Aldag said at the Tour in July. I think it fits our strategy, but ultimately it's the team owners who will decide."

"It is within my power to choose the team. 'I wrote down eight names, and Mark was among them. The team owner (Ryder) had the right to overrule me and he did. And now here are eight athletes who have done nothing wrong.

Ryder, on the other hand, said that the selection of the eight athletes was a team decision.

"We've had our differences, but based on the conversations we've had internally, all the information we have, and the route taken together, I feel the team has chosen the best team for this year's Tour de France," Ryder said in July.

Ardagh rode professionally for 15 years, the last 13 of which were with Telecom/T-Mobile; in 2007, he was one of a number of former T-Mobile riders who admitted to using EPO during races in the 1990s, and T-Mobile The company withdrew from sponsoring the team after the 2007 season. The team then became Team Highroad until sportswear company Columbia became the team's new main sponsor before the 2008 Tour de France.

The team then became HTC, but despite its success, especially with star rider Cavendish, the team closed at the end of 2011 when team owner Bob Stapleton was unable to find a new head sponsor.

Aldag then worked with Cavendish again at Quick Step from 2013 to 2015.