Lauren Boyle’s World Record Controversy Boils Over to New Zealand Mainstream Media

Photo by Joao Marc Bosch

WELLINGTON, New Zealand, August 12. THE controversy surrounding Lauren Boyle’s world record in the short course 1500-meter freestyle this weekend has boiled over to mainstream attention from One News in New Zealand.

Lauren Boyle clocked in at a 15:22.68 at the Wellington Winter Championships, which crushed the standing world record of 15:26.95 set by Mireia Belmonte Garcia last November. Her performance, however, did not come without controversy as SwimWatch.net co-founder and swim coach David Wright had already protested the use of the Wellington Regional Aquatic Centre earlier in the week.

Wright, who has often been a thorn in Swimming New Zealand’s side with regular shots at the organization on his blog, claimed that the pool not only has a current, but also is too shallow in the shallow end (1.2m). FINA, however, requires a minimum depth of 1.35m per FINA Rule FR2.3.

In this video, Wright tells One News why he opposes the ratification of the swim, while Swimming New Zealand’s CEO Christian Renford counters with SNZ’s reasoning behind pushing for the time to be ratified by FINA.

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