Paula Dunn has been appointed interim head coach at UK Athletics following the departure of Stephen Maguire.

The 58-year-old, who was Paralympic head coach for 10 years before taking the role of team leader for major athletics championships in 2022, will lead the Performance programme through next year’s Paris Olympics and Paralympic Games.

“I’m looking forward to working with the performance staff and athletes once more at this incredibly important time for the GB and NI team,” Dunn said.

“The results from Paris (World Para Athletics Championships) and Budapest (World Championships) this summer were excellent, and I want to ensure we keep providing world-class support in the approach to Paris and help every athlete perform at their very best.

“There isn’t a moment to lose, and I am excited to rejoin UKA and help the team to succeed.”

UKA chief executive 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.

“2024 is a very important year for the sport with a home World Indoor Championships, a Para World Championships, European Championships as well as the Olympics and Paralympics.

“She is coming in at a critical time for the performance team, but her knowledge and experience will make a huge impact.”

UKA announced on Tuesday that Maguire was leaving his position as technical director with immediate effect, less than two months after overseeing a very successful World Championships in Budapest, with the British team equalling their best ever medal haul of 10.

Sprinter Dina Asher-Smith labelled the “snap decision” as “incredibly short-sighted” on Instagram and called for an explanation from UKA.

Great Britain are primed for a medal bonanza at the Olympics, according to British Athletics technical director Stephen Maguire.

The squad’s 10 medals at the World Championships in Budapest matched the record from Stuttgart in 1993.

Keely Hodgkinson’s 800m silver and two 4x400m relay bronze medals on the final evening on Sunday boosted the tally – less than a year before the start of the Paris Olympics.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Josh Kerr won gold and, after just four track and field medals at the Tokyo Olympics, Maguire has high hopes next year.

He said: “Paris is going to be another level but the way we’re getting the medals, in very tough competition, I’d be very optimistic.

“I’m delighted. The amount of finalists that we’ve had, the amount of top-12 (finishes) that we’ve had, a lot of the younger athletes stepping up and actually converting what they’re doing in the season coming into competition.

“It’s been brilliant. So there’s a real feelgood factor, Kat started things off. That story just resonated through everyone.

“What a start with that and the mixed relay and then things snowballed.

“These World Championships have been tough. The standard has been absolutely through the roof.”

The men’s 4x100m relay team missed out on a medal, finishing fourth in Saturday’s final, after a disrupted build-up when Reece Prescod dropped out of the squad on the eve of the championships.

Maguire also had to take more responsibility for the relays with head of sprints and relays Darren Campbell officially on sick leave.

The men were the only relay squad not to win a medal in Budapest – with the others all collecting bronze – and Maguire will seek talks with Prescod.

“There are never going to be winners. The athlete is always the loser, aren’t they? He didn’t perform and whatever but it’s communication, understanding behaviours,” said Maguire, who was previously sprints and relays coach.

“I’m not sure it’s (about) clearing the air but, in high performance sport, you need black and white conversations as well. I think there’s a conversation needed.

“High performance sport is difficult and the ability to compete at this level is difficult. Reece and I actually have a good relationship and I’ll have no problems chatting to Reece at the end of September, October time.”