BikeNZ BMX national coach Ken Cools has resigned to take up a new role back in his native Canada.
Cools has accepted the position as Canada's first National Coach and Performance Director for BMX, based near Vancouver.
While he enjoyed the job in New Zealand, the lure to return home to be closer to his family and the challenges of the new role were the deciding factors.
Cools, a well-known and highly respected former pro rider and coach, initially came to New Zealand as a late replacement for Grant White, who took up a position with Great Britain in the lead-up to Beijing in 2008 where the sport made its Olympic debut.
He was consequently reappointed for a four-year term, charged with developing a high performance programme from scratch and guiding the elite riders to the London Olympics where Sarah Walker won a silver medal.
