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A trusted lieutenant of Jacco Verhaeren, Melbourne man Taylor will step into the role from October, replacing the Dutch boss who has been in charge for nearly seven years.

Verhaeren worked with Olympic champions Pieter van den Hoogenband and Inge de Bruijn when he led the Dutch swimming program and was hired in 2013 to overhaul Australia’s set up following the team’s disappointing medal haul at the London Olympics in 2012.

Verhaeren was contracted until after the 2020 Olympics but when the Tokyo Games were postponed by 12 months because of the coronavirus pandemic, he made the decision to return to the Netherlands with his family.

“I tried to look for ways to extend, but you can’t compromise in a high performance environment, nor did I want to compromise my family,” Verhaeren said in a statement Wednesday.

Verhaeren will remain in Australia until September in a transition phase with Taylor, who coached three-time Olympic gold medalist Leisel Jones and was part of the national coaching program.