The 75-year-old from Marlow, who has been involved in winning 14 Olympic and World Championship gold medals, will be aiming to guide Russia to their first Olympic rowing medal since Athens 2004. 

"We signed the contract with Mike today," Veniyamin Bout, President of the Russian Rowing Federation, said. 

"The primary target is to win an Olympic medal.

"We will be working with him for this Olympic cycle up to the 2016 Rio Games."

Spacklen's international coaching career stretches back to the 1976 Olympics in Montreal when he helped Britain's Michael Hart and Chris Baillieu win a silver medal in the double sculls.

His first Olympic gold medal came at Los Angeles in 1984 when Britain's coxed four, including Steve Redgrave, won.

Spracklen also worked with Redgrave when he won the coxless pairs in Seoul four years later, the second of his record five consecutive Olympic gold medals, before he moved to Canada.


He has also worked with the United States during a career which, in 2002, saw him crowned the International Rowing Federation (FISA) Coach of the Year after guiding the Canadian men's eight to the gold medal at the World Championships.

Spracklen had left Canada last year, despite leading the men's eight to a silver medal at London 2012, following concerns over his management style.

Soviet Union rowers won a total of 42 medals in the Olympics, including 12 gold, between Helsinki 1952 and Seoul 1988.

But since Russia has started competing as a single country at Atlanta in 1996 they have won only three medals in rowing, only one of which was a gold, in the men's quadruple sculls at Athens 2004. 


Spracklen is expected to work mainly with the men's eight in the build-up to Rio 2016.

"The world's leading coaches have been shocked by the results of the Russian national team in the last few years", Spracklen told the Kommersant newspaper.

"Russia obviously has a huge potential; there are many athletic young men and women, so there is a potential for great victories.

"Why aren't there any?

"That's what I'll have to figure out.

"This is a new challenge for me and I took it on only because I saw that Russia wanted to revive the Soviet traditions for real.

"Without this will, it will be impossible to create the pyramid.

"I only need to share my experience and guide the athletes in the right direction."

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]