Former Canadian national technical advisor Carol-Angela Orchard (pictured) starts work on November 18 as head of beam and artistic preparation, working alongside the coaching staff throughout the high performance squad going into London 2012 and beyond.

Orchard has a wealth of experience spanning 30 years including four Olympic Games, 11 World Championships, four Pan American Games and three Commonwealth Games.

Tim Jones, British Gymnastics Olympic performance director, said: "We have highlighted that we can make significant performance gains in our beam work.

"We are also looking to ensure we can influence our next generation of gymnasts and this appointment is an indication or our commitment to future Olympic cycles."

Orchard prides herself on innovation and has the honour of creating five original elements on beam and floor named by the world governing body FIG after her gymnasts, and included in the official Code of Points.

"I have tremendous respect for the British coaches, gymnasts and judges," she said.

"It will be an absolute honour to assist them in the pursuit of excellence.

"Beam is such a psychological event, and I believe it is essential to inspire each individual gymnast to perform with a positive and aggressive attitude in order to be successful."