Facing challenging conditions, routine is key for Singapore kitefoiler Max Maeder in Olympic medal bid

MARSEILLE: It has been a waiting game over the past few days for 17-year-old Singapore kitefoiler Maximilian Maeder. 
Light winds have made things challenging for not just the current world champion but for the entire fleet.
No race was completed on Wednesday (Aug 7), which meant only seven races in the opening series went ahead. Maeder finished second, which means he is through to the final on Thursday.
With a shot at an Olympic medal on the horizon, he intends to stick to what he has done time and time again.
“What has proven to work is what I’ll try to execute. But I’ll hope at the very least that it proved to work before, so let’s hope it works again,” he told reporters on Wednesday after the races were called off.
Slovenia’s Toni Vodisek joins Maeder in the final after finishing top of the fleet with 12 net points. Maeder ended the opening series with 15. 
According to the official Olympic Games website, the third to 10th kitefoilers will compete in two semi-finals on Thursday for the remaining final spots. The winner of each semi-final moves on.
“Light winds make differences smaller. You have less power in the kite, you have fewer options, you have smaller margins,” said Maeder, who has passed the time in between races playing chess, listening to music and texting.
Maeder said it was a “fair assessment” that the races in the opening series have been the toughest he has been in this year and that there has been an “extremely high level” of competition.
“You expect with all that effort you put in that you have an above-average performance, but you have an average performance.
“That’s not (just) for me, but for everyone, at least from what I’ve heard and seen.”
In the final, competitors will need three race wins to secure gold.
However, Vodisek begins the final with two race wins and will only need one more to take gold.
Maeder starts the final with one race win and will need two more victories, while the winning semi-finalists need three race wins.
The final could have anywhere between one to six races depending on weather conditions and results.
“It’s the Olympic Games. It wouldn’t be exciting if you weren’t nervous or anxious or tense or in anticipation. That’s what makes it beautiful,” said Maeder.
“Everyone’s on edge and it gives it that special flavour of unique competition.”
In May, Maeder successfully defended his kitefoiling world title. 
Last August, the kitefoiler clinched gold in the men’s kite event at the Sailing World Championships in the Netherlands.
Prior to the Olympics, the Asian Games gold medallist won five events in a row, with the youngster winning the men’s title at the Formula Kite European Championships in March.
“I’d be lying if I said (the Olympics) was not different at all,” said Maeder.
“However, the procedure that I’ll follow and the routine that I will do is most likely identical to what I’ve done before, if not a little bit more meticulous … I am going to follow the routine and I’m going to follow what I think is best.”
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