Weather can’t stop support for S'pore's Max Maeder as crowd trickles in for Olympic medal bid watch party

Despite the heavy downpour in the East Coast area before 6pm, many people still showed up at the National Sailing Centre on time to support Singaporean kitefoiler Max Maeder's Olympic medal bid.

The 17-year-old had secured a spot in the kite foiling grand finals for the 2024 Paris Olympics, coming in second from the qualifying round.

The finals had started on Aug. 8 night (Singapore time) but were postponed to Aug. 9 at 6pm due to unfavourable wind conditions.

While the rain in the East Coast area had stopped by the time the races were supposed to start, the races did not start on time, again due to wind conditions.

As Maeder reached the finals, being second in the qualifying rounds, he started with one match point.

Slovenia's Toni Vodisek, who was first, had two points. However, he was penalised before the Aug. 9 races started due to equipment issues, which puts him, Maeder and Austria's Valentin Bontus on equal footing.

However, there's also speculation that if the races don't manage to start today, Maeder would have to settle with a bronze medal based on the current standings.

But the bad weather in Singapore (or in France) did not dampen the spirits of Maeder's supporters.

People brought food for the wait

Other than the same setup from the day before, more local businesses showed up with goodies for the supporters.

A business owner, Chris, told Mothership they had prepared beverages for a National Day event, but they decided to set aside some to support the watch party.

"Not just Max, but every athlete that made it to the Olympics is just amazing. Because I think the journey is not easy. So this is just a little thank you to them."

To keep people's bellies warm, kitefoiler Andrew Foo brought in a barbecue.

The races didn't start at 7pm, and more and more people started to show up.

In the meantime, we get to watch the National Day Parade — also the nation's pride and joy.

Top photo of Max Maeder via Edwin Tong's Facebook by SportSG/Jeremy Lee, & Mothership