The Baltimore Running Festival is seeking a new major sponsor, as Comcast has ended its relationship with the event.

The cable television provider branded the marathon, its marquee race, during the festival's first two years. While Fila will continue to sponsor the accompanying 5K and Geico Direct will do the same with the marathon team relay, festival promoter Corrigan Sports Enterprises is searching for a new partner that will pay to attach its name to the marathon proper.

"Comcast has decided not to renew their deal with us," said Lee Corrigan, the president of CSE. "They felt they wanted to move on to other things. They had an option to renew annually, and anybody could get out of the agreement at any time. Now we're looking at a number of Baltimore's staple companies to become the new major sponsor."

One of those is The Sun, which at one time in the 1980s sponsored another Baltimore-based marathon.

"We have been approached," said Linda Geeson, The Sun's Director of Marketing and Communications. "It's a premier event. We're looking at all the possibilities, but at this point we haven't committed one way or another."

While Comcast, which provides cable service from New England to Florida, is searching for broader sponsorship opportunities, it still may remain involved in some capacity with the Baltimore Running Festival.

"Comcast services most of the East Coast, and we're just now finalizing a merger [with AT&T;]," said Kirstie Durr, a Comcast spokeswoman. "From a national perspective, we're taking a long look at our sponsorships. We had a great two years with the Baltimore Running Festival, and we wish it well. We would like to continue to support the event, and it's likely that we'll do that, just not as the title sponsor."

CSE's three-year agreement with Baltimore City to manage the running festival expires after next year, but Corrigan said he would be "stunned if it is not extended. We're working on that now."

The 2003 Baltimore Running Festival will be held Oct. 18. A half marathon will be added to the program, and Corrigan said its goal is to attract runners not quite ready for a marathon and those preparing for other marathons. Corrigan also wants to resume a partnership that would send runners locked out of the Marine Corps Marathon to Baltimore.

The reworked course used two months ago was well received, and will undergo only minor alterations. A closing stretch other than Martin Luther King Boulevard and a different route from Patterson Park to Lake Montebello are being considered.