Listen above to Adam Cooper's interview with Lewis Clareburt's coach Gary Hollywood, and click the link below for the full New Zealand Herald Premium story.

The coach of Olympic swimmer Lewis Clareburt is issuing an ultimatum to the Wellington City Council over access to its aquatic facilities, following a disruptive build-up to this year's Tokyo Games.

And if an agreement over pool access isn't reached, Clareburt and coach Gary Hollywood appear prepared to leave behind family and friends in the capital and be based elsewhere for the short three-year cycle leading up to Paris 2024.

Twenty-two-year-old Clareburt headlined the seven-member New Zealand swim team at Tokyo, finishing seventh in his preferred 400-metre individual medley event. This followed the Wellingtonian smashing his own national record in the heats in his maiden Olympic swim.

Clareburt's first Olympic appearance came on the back of a surprise third placing at the world championships in South Korea in 2019, and a bronze medal at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

However, a lack of pools in Wellington leading up to Tokyo caused major disruption to his Olympic preparations, which Hollywood says cannot happen again if Clareburt's to be a genuine medal contender in Paris.

Clareburt – part of the Capital Swim Club – was forced to train in public lanes as the Wellington City Council struggled to accommodate all those wanting to use its facilities. His camp received an email in May advising them that several sessions at the city's only 50-metre pool were being cancelled due to high demand.

"We basically need better access to 50-metre pool time, and we need that to be uninterrupted," Hollywood said.

Read the rest of the story on New Zealand Herald Premium at https://bit.ly/3Djq5ll