S. Korean nat'l bobsleigh team coach Malcolm Lloyd dies at 68

Malcolm "Gomer" Lloyd, the South Korean national bobsleigh team coach, has died days before he was to join his South Korean team in the U.S. for an international competition. He was 68.

Lloyd died at his Canadian home on Sunday, and investigations showed he had been suffering from cancer, according to BBC and the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation (IBSF).

He had been scheduled to join the South Korean team on Saturday for the 2015-2016 IBSF World Cup in Lake Placid, New York.

"We received a surprise notice from Mrs. Lloyd," an official with the Korea Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation (KBSF) said.

The former Olympic bobsledder coached teams from Britain, the U.S., Canada, Italy and Russia. He had been part of the South Korean national team since right before the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.

Lloyd is credited with vastly improving the South Korean bobsleigh team by implementing customized training methods.

His passing will likely impact the South Korean team's preparations for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, a KBSF official said.

"We expect a significant loss in our competitive strength," the official said, on condition of anonymity. "But at the same time, our team is solid enough to prevent huge worries." (Yonhap)