Tokyo 2020: Alice Dearing doesn't want young Black swimmers put off by Soul Cap ban

The 24-year-old is currently Great Britain's only black elite swimmer and will become the first Black female swimmer to represent Britain at an Olympics after Team GB confirmed her place in the 10km open water marathon last week.

Headwear made by the brand Soul Cap, which Dearing had partnered with last year, has been banned from the upcoming Games by the International Swimming Federation (FINA) because the caps do not fit "the natural form of the head", but the body is reviewing the use of products for natural Black hair.

Dearing is a co-founder of the Black Swimming Association, who have said the move will put off many young swimmers from ethnic minority backgrounds taking part in the sport, and the Loughborough University student wants a solution to be found following fierce backlash towards the decision.

"It is open to them, I really hope that with it being under review that some agreement will come about, I'm sure it will.

"But I don't want people to look at elite level swimming and think: 'It's not open for me, I can't wear my hair the way I want to and I'll go and find another sport', because that's not what we want.

"Change is happening at least, Soul Cap has been made and even something as simple as that wasn't around when I started out swimming.

"My mum used to have to relax my hair and then braid it to make sure it would fit into a cap and make our lives easier and it's only when I've got older that I could find ways to manage it in its natural form.

"It's brilliant to see so many people passionate about this and wanting to make sure that swimming is open and available to everyone because that is the goal. I'm really hoping to see that this story would have a happy ending and I'm pretty sure it will.

"The issue of Black people in swimming is a heavy topic so I'm happy to be the person to speak about it because I want to make people aware that these stereotypes aren't acceptable and Black people should feel comfortable at swimming pools.

"They shouldn't feel subjugated or discriminated against in any way, so if I can help in any way to make that better and leave the sport one day where I can look back on it and see the difference I've made then that's what I want to do."