ITHACA, N.Y. -- Nathan Taylor, the George E. Heekin Head Coach of Men's Track and Cross Country at Cornell, has been tapped to coach by the U.S. Virgin Islands and will work closely with Virgin Island athletes as they prepare for the IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea later this summer, as well as the Pan American Games in Mexico in October and the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

A former resident of both St. Thomas and St. Croix, Taylor will work primarily with the jumpers and multi-eventers, which will re-unite hime with Cornell all-time great and NCAA champion Muhammad Halim '08, a native of the Virgin Islands. His connection to the Virgin Islands stretches back nearly 30 years: as an athlete in the 1980s, Taylor competed internationally for the Virgin Islands. Taylor was with the Virgin Islands team this past weekend at the Central American/Caribbean Athletic championships in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. Moving forward, he will consult with other members of the coaching staff and medical personnel as the Virgin Islands prepares for the major international meets on the world track calendar in the next 18 months. Along with Halim, the Virgin Islands' top performer is Tabarie Henry, who competed at Texas A&M and is now a professional athlete with a fourth place finish in the 400 at the 2009 IAAF World Championships and a personal best of 44.77 on his resume.