USA Gymnastics President Steve Penny has announced they will appoint a high-performance director ©USA Gymnastics

USA Gymnastics’ elite men’s division will appoint a high performance director to replace the existing national team coordinator after the team finished in fifth place in the all-around event for the second straight Olympic Games, President Steve Penny has announced.

The governing body is now recruiting for the newly-created role, with the successful applicant taking over from current national team coordinator Kevin Mazeika.

Penny confirmed Mazeika’s contract would not be renewed when it expires at the end of this year.

The high performance director will be based at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

The decision comes after the American men’s side ended the team all-around competition at Rio 2016 in fifth spot behind Britain, China, Russia and gold medallists Japan.

"The coaches, committee members and staff did a thorough review of the existing structure and results, and then took a hard look at what is needed to prepare our athletes for success heading toward Tokyo [2020] and beyond," Penny said.

"Having a full-time director based in Colorado Springs is the logical next step and will better enable us to take advantage of the facilities and opportunities available at the U.S. Olympic Training Center."

USA Gymnastics’ high performance director will report directly to vice-president of men’s gymnastics Dennis McIntyre, who thanked Mazeika for his contribution after 12 years working for the organisation.

"USA Gymnastics appreciates Kevin’s hard work, dedication and contributions within the men’s programme as the national team coordinator," said McIntyre.

"Kevin has played an important role in the men’s programme for the last 12 years."

Danell Leyva was the star performer for the US at Rio 2016 as he won two silver medals ©Getty Images
Danell Leyva was the star performer for the US at Rio 2016 as he won two silver medals ©Getty Images

Mazeika served as head coach for the men’s teams which claimed the silver medal in Athens at the 2004 Olympics, as well as bronze in Beijing four years’ later.

His success earned him a promotion to national team coordinator in 2009.

"It has been an honour and a privilege to serve as the US men’s national team coordinator for the past seven years," he said.

"I’m grateful to have worked with such an amazing group of dedicated and talented athletes and coaches, and I will miss that the most.

"I want to thank USA Gymnastics for the opportunity to serve the U.S. men’s team in this capacity."

Danell Leyva was the star performer for the US at Rio 2016 as he won silver medals in both the parallel bars and high bar events.

Alex Naddour also left the Brazilian city with a medal as he earned a bronze medal on the pommel horse.