Welsh Cycling has appointed American Erin Hartwell as the new national coach.

A six-time medal winner in the Olympics and World Championships, Hartwell replaces Shane Sutton, who left his post after the Commonwealth Games.

The 33-year-old Hartwell will take up his new post on 27 January after agreeing a four-year deal.

He is currently a second-year mathematics student at the University of North Dakota, but will suspend his course while he's in Wales.

Hartwell won a bronze medal in the 1992 Olympics and then a silver in 1996, before a persistent heel injury ended his riding career in June 2001.

The new Velodrome at Newport, due for completion in October, will give track-orientated Hartwell a world-class facility with a state-of-the-art sports science laboratory.

He joins with Welsh Cycling at an unprecedented peak, having both the British men's and women's Road Race champions in the shape of Julian Winn and Nicole Cooke.