Lauren Boyle and Sophie Pascoe aside, it’s been another forgettable and concerning year for swimming in New Zealand.
And, frustratingly, even Boyle’s year has been hampered.
Last month it was revealed the Rio Olympic medal hope has been without a specialist coach for six months and taxpayer-funded entities Swimming New Zealand and High Performance Sport New Zealand are both still struggling to find a solution – for the most promising athlete the sport has seen in this country in years.
Crowned the Commonwealth Games 400m freestyle champion, Boyle took herself to Spain in the run-up to Glasgow 2014 in order to prepare properly under world-renowned coach Fred Vergnoux.
The lack of adequate coaching in New Zealand forced Boyle to surrender her world short course title this month without even mounting a challenge, something she was frustrated and disappointed by.
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