Kitefoiler Maximilian Maeder earns first sailing spot at Paris Olympics for Singapore
Teenager wins in the Formula Kite men's competition at Sailing World Championships to seal the spot
UPDATE: Singapore kitefoiler Maximilian Maeder has clinched the Formula Kite title at the Sailing World Championships, beating Slovenia's Toni Vodisek in the final on Saturday (19 August).
SINGAPORE — Maximilian Maeder became the first sailor to secure a spot for Singapore at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Friday (18 August), when the kitefoiler came in second overall in the opening series at the Sailing World Championships at The Hague, Netherlands.
The 16-year-old - who won his third straight title at the Formula Kite Youth World Championships in July - was placed second on 23 nett points, just behind Slovenia's Toni Vodisek (22 points).
Both of them qualified for Saturday's medal series and each earned a direct spot in the four-man final. That guarantees Maeder the Olympic spot for Singapore, as he will achieve at least a top-four finish in the event, where eight qualification berths are available for the Paris Games next year.
Maeder has been making waves since winning his first Formula Kite Youth World Championships in 2021. He also won the Formula Kite men's competition at the 2021 World Sailing Youth Championships, and rose to the top of the men's Formula Kite world rankings in September 2021.
He is the second athlete to secure a spot for Singapore at the Paris Olympics, after swimmer Jonathan Tan met the qualifying mark in the men's 50m freestyle at the SEA Games in May.
Singapore was represented by four sailors at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics: Kimberly Lim and Cecilia Low (49erFX), Ryan Lo (laser) and Amanda Ng (windsurfing).
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