Gilbert named Canada’s head coach for world track and field championships

May 19, 2017 | 11:00 AM

OTTAWA — Olympic relay champion Glenroy Gilbert has been named Canada’s head coach for the world track and field championships, while Kim Cousins and Rick Reelie will be Canada’s co-head coaches at the world para championships.

Athletics Canada remains without a head coach since the firing of Peter Eriksson in December.

Gilbert, an Ottawa native, ran on the Canadian 4×100-metre relay team that won Olympic gold in Atlanta in 1996. He’s worked with Canada’s relay program for several years.

“We have great momentum coming off our best Olympic Games in modern history, the focus continues to be high performance, driven by results,” Gilbert said Friday in a release.

Athletics Canada is in the final stages of hiring a chief technical officer and then will turn its attention to the head coach position. 

The world para championships are July 14-23, followed by the Aug. 4-13 world championships. Both events are in London.  

Led by gold medallists Derek Drouin (high jump) and Shawn Barber (pole vault), Canada won a best-ever eight medals at the 2015 world championships in Beijing. Canada also won 11 medals at the 2015 world para championships.  

Athletes will attend one of two preparation camps ahead of the world championships. The main camp is July 23-Aug. 1 in Guadalajara, Spain, while a camp for endurance athletes will be held in St. Moritz, Switzerland, from July 18-Aug. 1.

The Canadian Press