5 things to know about Maximilian Maeder, Singapore's newest Olympic medallist

MARSEILLE: Back-to-back kitefoiling world champion Maximilian Maeder is now an Olympic medallist.

On Friday (Aug 9), the 17-year-old clinched bronze in the men's final at Paris 2024, becoming the youngest Singaporean to stand on a Games podium.

Here's what you should know about Singapore's latest sporting star.

Maeder's childhood was spent between his father Valentin's native Switzerland, his mother's Singapore where he was born, and the Indonesian island of Sulawesi where his parents built a dive resort.

And pretty much as soon as he could walk, Maeder was up and skiing and enjoying being active, his father told CNA previously.

The eldest of three brothers, Maeder was exposed to a variety of sports including table tennis, tennis and badminton.

From young, a competitive fire burned deep in Maeder.

When just four years old, he lost to some older competitors in a ski race -- and reacted by being the first to show up at training the next day.

Two years later, he was introduced to kiteboarding before eventually progressing to kitefoiling.

Maeder was brought up to think for himself.

"(He's) always encouraged to review (things) himself, to make sure he doesn't run away with any preconceived notions, that he doesn't just believe what others tell him without questioning it," said Valentin.

What he and his wife had hoped to do was to raise a "decision-maker".

"If he is out there, an eight-year-old boy in 3m waves, he needs to make the right decision," Valentin added. 

Maeder would also accompany his parents to observe their business meetings.

Experiences like these taught him how assess others and be a good judge of character, said his father.

Maeder told CNA that as a child, it was "the feeling of home and the food" which drew him to