MINSK – American-Canadian coach Glen Hanlon announced his resignation as the head coach of the Belarusian national team with just over three months until the Olympics.

Hanlon led Belarus to the quarterfinals of the 2009 IIHF World Championship, as he did in 2006. He was seen as the symbol of the team’s upswing and was credited for Belarus reaching eighth place in the IIHF World Ranking.

This year, the relationship became closer as Hanlon coached the Belarusian KHL team Dynamo Minsk and moved to Minsk with his family.

However, Minsk is in ninth place in the 12-team Western Conference. That’s not what the club hoped for after signing many new players.

On October 20, following a 4-1 defeat against Amur Khabarovsk, Vladimir Naumov, the president of the Belarusian ice hockey association, announced the dismissal of the whole coaching staff.

“With such a roster, the team should not play like this. The team lacks character and the current coaching staff will not be able to install it,” Naumov was quoted two weeks ago.

Two days later, it was announced that Hanlon would stay as the national team coach, but Hanlon was of another opinion.

Despite the 2010 Olympics nearing, the 52-year-old stepped down on Monday after talks with Naumov.

“After a serious and careful consideration, I have decided that it would be better for the team and its performance if I left,” Hanlon said at a press conference in Minsk.

Hanlon’s successor has not been named yet.

“To be honest, Hanlon’s decision was not a huge surprise for me,” Naumov said. “I don’t think that this will influence the national team, we have very skilled players. The new head coach will most likely be announced by early December.”