Autographed full-page poster of Joseph Schooling in today's Straits Times

SINGAPORE - Joseph Schooling may have left the country, but The Straits Times has produced a souvenir for fans of Singapore's first Olympic champion.

Friday's (Aug 19) edition of the newspaper carries a full-page poster of the Singaporean swimmer standing in front of adoring supporters at an open-top bus parade in his honour on Thursday.

The photo, taken by ST photojournalist Kua Chee Siong, includes a personal message from the 21-year-old to the people of Singapore: "Thank you for all the support! I love you guys!"

Thursday's parade rounded off Schooling's event-filled homecoming. He arrived home from Rio de Janeiro on Monday, two days after after he edged out American legend Michael Phelps and reigning 100m butterfly world champion Chad le Clos to win the Olympic 100m fly final.

He then made an appearance in Parliament, where he was formally congratulated by the House for his achievements. He also received news that his national service deferment will be extended till after the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

On Tuesday, he visited his alma mater, Anglo-Chinese School (Junior) at Winstedt Road, where 1,607 pupils gave him a rousing reception.

Wednesday saw Schooling take a break from media engagements, as he met family and friends for a function at Tanah Merah Country Club.

The University of Texas at Austin student left for the United States early Friday morning.

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.