Johannesburg - Chad le Clos will be banking on some Italian magic after he announced renowned international coach Andrea di Nino as his new mentor at his CLC Swimming Academy in Cape Town.
The Olympic gold medalist made a the shock announcement at the end of 2016 that he would split from coach Graham Hill ending one of the most successful relationships in South African swimming.
Hill has mentored the four-time Olympic medalist for the last 14 years, coaching the 24-year-old to the Olympics, the World Championships, and Commonwealth Games.
Di Nino is famed for his success with butterfly Olympic medalists Milorad Cavic and Evgeny Korotyshkin, who tied with Le Clos for 100m butterfly silver at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
"I’m excited to be working with Andrea, his coaching record is second-to-none, and I look forward to our journey together,” Le Clos said in a statement on Friday.
“I need to continue to improve to achieve my goals in swimming, and Andrea is the perfect person to coach me in this next stage of my career.”
Di Nino, who was head coach for Trinidad and Tobago in Athens 2004 and Russia at London 2012 believed Le Clos had the potential to reach even greater heights.
“I am delighted to be coaching Chad and think that together we can achieve great things,” Di Nino said.
“He has already had a lot of success, but I see his talent, drive and ambition to do more, and I cannot wait to get started.”
Meanwhile, Le Clos announced Australian Robert Hurley as his Performance Manager, who will run the elite and development squads of the new CLC Swimming Academy.