Image: Supplied.

The legendary Roger De Coster has announced his retirement as manager of Team USA’s Motocross of Nations (MXoN) effort, achieving a total of 25 victories over a career that has spanned more than four decades.

De Coster, who is an AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Legend, has managed the MXoN team 36 times, four of those in the Trophee des Nations race that was staged prior to MXoN being introduced in 1984.

“Roger De Coster’s impact on motocross in America is indelible and without compare,” said AMA president and CEO, Rob Dingman. “On behalf of the AMA board of directors, AMA staff and AMA members everywhere, I extend our heartfelt gratitude for the decades of leadership, guidance and numerous FIM world championships. Roger, we couldn’t have done it without you.”

De Coster has one of the most storied careers in the sport. As a racer, he won five 500cc Motocross World Championships and four Trans-AMA Motocross Championships. He also was a member of six winning Belgian MXoN teams, 10 winning Trophee des Nations teams, and was a Gold Medalist in the International Six Day Trial.

“I always wanted our sport to become bigger, more important and more respected around the world,” he reflected. “This is why I raced in many places around the world besides the GPs — Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Australia — and ended up in the United States for good.

“For me, the Motocross of Nations became the single biggest race of the year, and I am very thankful to the US riders and all the people who supported this event with their best efforts and gave me the support to fulfill a lot of my dreams. Thank you, all.”

Starting this year, in alignment with the approach of most FIM National Federations, the AMA director of racing will lead the team, working closely with the individual riders’ team managers to prepare the riders, develop strategy and take responsibility for key decisions.

“The hardest job in the world might be following in the footsteps of Roger ‘The Man’ De Coster because it should go without saying that no one can fill Roger’s shoes,” said AMA director of racing Mike Pelletier.

“Of course, that’s not our intention here, but simply to adopt the model that other national teams use with success, allowing ourselves to leverage the contributions and input from our riders and their managers. Team USA almost always includes riders from multiple teams with different ideas and strategic thinking.”

De Coster remains active in the sport as the motorsports director for KTM North America. Previously, he was the team manager for the KTM Factory Racing Team in both AMA Supercross and Pro Motocross.