CEO of British Cycling, Brian Facer, has stepped down after only two years in the role, following a difficult 12 months for the organisation.

It has not been the smoothest of sailing for the exiting executive, the organisation received backlash in April for suspending a policy that allowed trans and non-binary athletes into competitions.

That was followed by the controversial sponsorship deal with oil and gas giant, Shell, that was announced in October.

Additionally, British Cycling was still contending with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic when Facer stepped into the role in 2021.

A full-time replacement is yet to be announced, however, British Cycling’s delivery director, Danielle Every has been appointed acting CEO until a permanent one can be appointed.

Commenting on the move, British Cycling chair, Frank Slevin, said: “We remain fully committed to the delivery of our ‘Lead our sport, inspire our communities’ strategy, as we continue our work to support and grow our sport and wider activities, and provide our Great Britain Cycling Team riders with the best possible platform for success,”

“Our new CEO will join the organisation at an exciting time as we build towards next year’s inaugural UCI Cycling World Championships in Scotland, and Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2024,” he said.

The move comes following AusCycling’s own change in leadership earlier this year that saw Craig Bingham step in as chair in January.