• The changes come at a period of immense turbulence at the governing body, with multiple changes in leadership on the organizational and performance sides.
• Malcolm’s departure, scheduled for after the European Championships in August, follows a poor Olympics in which Britain missed their medal target.
• Maguire, who left his role as the sprints and relays lead at UKA in 2020 after Malcolm was surprisingly picked ahead of him for head coach, will return in September in a new technical director role.
Stephen Maguire has been appointed by the UK Athletics as their new technical director following the exit of Christian Malcom despite rejecting the role last year.
Stephen Maguire makes the last eight in York Photo Getty Images
The appointment was brought to speed by the UK Athletics interim CEO Mark Munro who said they are delighted by the appointment of the technical director role and Maguire is the best person to lead the programme towards Paris and Los Angeles.
‘We were mindful of ensuring we could make progress as soon as this summer’s championships concluded, and it is a significant boost for the programme that we can confirm his appointment now ahead of a September start.
‘Stephen brings great experience and an excellent track record within high-performance athletics. It is another piece in the jigsaw as we continue to prioritize more effective support to athletes and coaches on the world-class performance programme.’
Maguire, who left his role as the sprints and relays lead at UKA in 2020 after Malcolm was surprisingly picked ahead of him for head coach, will return in September in a new technical director role.
The changes come at a period of immense turbulence at the governing body, with multiple changes in leadership on the organizational and performance sides.
Malcolm’s departure, scheduled for after the European Championships in August, follows a poor Olympics in which Britain missed their medal target.
Maguire will replace Christian Malcolm, and will start his new role in September Photo Getty Images
He remains popular among many athletes but there was always a whispered view that the top job came too soon for the 43-year-old.
Maguire, who rejected a return to UKA last year, as revealed by Sports mail, is vastly respected around the sport and known for his diligence and attention to detail.
Tasked with transforming a struggling team, which will again find medals tough to acquire at next month’s World Championships, Maguire will join from Sport Ireland, where he has been head of high-performance coaching for almost a year and a half.
Maguire’s scorecard
He has won six major ranking tournaments, including the 2004 UK Championship, and has twice since reached the finals of that event.
Maguire turned professional in 1998 after winning the IBSF World Snooker Championship. He was in the top 16 of the snooker world rankings for 11 consecutive years, from 2005 to 2016, twice reaching world no. 2. He is a prolific break-builder, having compiled more than 450 century
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