We speak to national sailor Maximilian Maeder about his year of wins.

Synopsis: The Straits Times looks at the talking points in sport every second Wednesday of the month. 

National sailor Maximilian Maeder has enjoyed a bountiful 2023 where the accolades have kept coming for the kitefoiling star. 

The 17-year-old became the first Singaporean nominated for the prestigious World Sailing’s Male Sailor of the Year after several milestone victories in 2023. He first won the Formula Kite Youth World Championships in Gizzeria, Italy in July before securing a spot for the 2024 Paris Olympics and claimed the coveted title at the Sailing World Championships a month later in The Hague, Netherlands.

He then went on to win a gold medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou at the end of September.

On the latest episode of Sports Talk, Maximilian spoke to sports reporter Deepanraj Ganesan on his memorable year and his thoughts on what awaits in 2024 with his eyes firmly fixed on a shiny gold medal on offer in Paris 

Highlights (click/tap above):

2:11  Maximilian’s favourite local sporting moment of 2023 

6:04 On becoming a world champion at 16 in 2023  

9:23 Qualifying for the Olympics and what it meant 

12:35 How would Maximilian define 2023 in terms of his own personal growth  

13:56 Looking ahead to 2024 and the Paris Olympics 

Read: https://str.sg/ifqz

Produced by: Deepanraj Ganesan (gdeepan@sph.com.sg) & Amirul Karim

Edited by: Amirul Karim

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