Hankinson, who led the team to a 39-45-30 record in his four seasons as head coach, led the team to three postseason appearances overall. "We decided to go in a different direction as an organization after an extensive internal evaluation," Rapids governor Charlie Wright said in a statement. Hankinson was appointed the Rapids' third head coach in December 2000. "Tim has demonstrated leadership qualities to the highest degree to go along with his wealth of experience," Wright said. "However, we are a team that needs to be a contender for the cup every year while playing exciting soccer." Wright said it became especially important to build a loyal fan base while the team works to build a stadium in Commerce City, just north of Denver. Voters there last week approved $64 million in additional sales taxes to finance road and utility improvements to support the stadium, expected to be open for the 2007 season.
Rapids fire Hankinson
DENVER (AP) -- The Colorado Rapids fired head coach Tim Hankinson on Tuesday, two weeks after the team was eliminated from the 2004 Major League Soccer playoffs with a 2-0 loss to Los Angeles.
