Paula Dunn has been appointed as the new interim head coach for UK Athletics following Stephen Maguire’s sudden departure on Tuesday.
Dunn, who had been the head coach for the Paralympic programme until the start of the 2022 season, returns to UK Athletics to lead the performance programme for the Paris Olympics and Paralympics.
Maguire’s immediate exit had taken his athletes by surprise when it was announced via a short statement on Tuesday having overseen a record-equalling 10-medal haul by his team of athletes at the World Championships in Budapest back in August.
Dina Asher-Smith was among those to voice her shock. She said: “Would love to see a full explanation of the reasoning behind this disappointing decision for the athletes and our performances.
“Stephen has been phenomenal, so dedicated and has an excellent understanding of what it takes to be successful in the sport of track and field.
“Having had a long history in the sport made him excellent at his job, which resulted in the team’s overwhelming success in Budapest and put us on an amazing path to Paris. Such a snap decision as athletes begin to prepare for an Olympic Games cannot have been done with any consideration of the performance needs of athletes.”
Following the appointment, UKA CEO Jack Buckner said: “Paula has a huge amount of experience in leading athletics and her track record in performance means she is the best person to oversee the performance programme towards Paris. She is coming at a critical time for the performance team but her knowledge and experience will make a huge impact.”
