Andre De Grasse makes coaching change, returns to Rana Reider who helped him win gold in Tokyo

Just 10 months before the Paris Olympics open, Canadian sprint star Andre De Grasse is changing coaches, returning to the man who helped him win gold in Tokyo in 2021.

The 28-year-old has parted ways with Irish coach John Coghlan to work with American Rana Reider in Jacksonville, Fla. Reider previously coached De Grasse from 2018 to 2022. 

"At the end of my season, my partner Nia and I made the decision to move our family back to Jacksonville, Fla. It's a much better set-up for our kids with schools and extracurricular activities," De Grasse told CBC Sports. 

De Grasse's move back to Reider comes five months after a sexual misconduct investigation into the high profile track coach was completed. Reider, 53, admitted to a consensual relationship with an 18-year-old female athlete and was placed on one year probation by the U.S. SafeSport Center.

Reider's probation allows him to coach elite sprinters, which includes Italian Marcell Jacobs, who won gold in the 100 metres at the Tokyo Olympics, and American star Trayvon Bromell. De Grasse won gold in the 200m in Tokyo as well as bronze in the 100m and silver in the 4x100 relay.

WATCH | De Grasse joins CBC Sports' Athletics North:

"Obviously there were some distractions in 2022 but those issues have been resolved and I enjoyed my first week of training with the group," De Grasse said. 

By many standards this past season wasn't up to De Grasse's potential while working with Coghlan. Three months into their training together De Grasse told CBC Sports it would take some adjusting and that "the two were still trying to get to know each other and get on the same page." 

There were signs of improvement in the closing part of the season, culminating in De Grasse winning the 200m