The feeling of freedom and flight he found whenever he was gliding over the water was what drew Max Maeder to kitefoiling when he was 10 years old.
He can travel up to 80kmh.
All eyes will be on Max Maeder as kitefoiling makes its Olympic debut in Marseille. The 17-year-old has dominated on the water this season, winning all the trophies on offer, including the European Championships and a second world title. His form in 2024 has led to his rivals comparing him to Formula One’s dominant driver Max Verstappen. ST dives into how Max’s pursuit to master his craft has made him one of the best in his sport.
What does Max
require to kitefoil?
Powered by kites of up to 23 sq m, kitefoilers navigate a race course on a board that is elevated above the surface of the water by a foil.
There are a few pieces of equipment that are essential to this sailing discipline.
Face Mask Helmet Impact Vest Handlebar Carabiner Harness Foilboard Foil Kite
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With hours spent racing and training under the sun, Max usually dons goggles and a UV protection face mask to shield him from UV rays.
He also wears a helmet and an impact vest under his bib for safety to ensure that he does not get seriously injured in the event of a crash.
Around his waist is a harness, which is used to hold the force of the kite. The handlebar is only used to control the kite, a soft, flexible wing or sail that fills with air and pulls Max forward in the direction he wants to go.
Max is balancing on a foilboard that is attached to a foil. Before a race, he regularly cleans his equipment as even a fingerprint on the foil can affect how fast he goes, as “the water doesn't completely stick to it so you have instability while riding”.
The kite is attached to the rider via a centreline, which pulls the rider along. Max uses four main sizes of kites for different wind conditions. They are: 23 sq m (six to 12 knots or 11.1 to 22.2kmh), 15 sq m (above 12 knots), 11 sq m (above 20 knots) and nine sq m (above 30 knots).
How does Max move on
the water surface?
There are three key techniques required in kitefoiling: foiling, tacking and jibing. These skills enable kitefoilers to move at fast speeds and navigate the race course.
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Foiling
Foiling is the basis of kitefoiling. This occurs when the board is lifted above the water by the foil. The fastest Max has gone is 43.1 knots (79.2kmh), close to the top speed of up to 80kmh. If the board is directly in contact with the water, the maximum speed is 25kmh.
With a quick-enough speed, the foil is able to generate lift to bring Max above the water surface.
The board is about half a metre above the water surface and Max has to rely on core and leg strength to maintain his balance.
Foiling allows Max to manoeuvre on the water by jibing and tacking, which are the two techniques that kitefoilers use to change direction.
Jibing
Jibing is a change of direction that is initiated downwind. This move is performed at higher speeds as the kitefoiler is travelling with the wind. It needs a little bit more commitment and guts to do, says Max, otherwise a crash is imminent.
To jibe, Max first ensures his kite rises, which gives him stability and allows him to switch the position of his feet.
He switches his feet and inverts his standing position.
He then turns with the wind.
To complete the jibe, the kite comes down and loops around, with Max following it to change his direction.
Tacking
With a tack – a change in direction against the wind – precision is key. While there is more time for Max to hesitate as he is moving at a slower speed, it is more technical as there is the risk of not getting enough pull from the kite or mistiming it.
To tack, Max first moves his kite up and starts turning into the wind.
This is where it is slightly different from the jibe as he turns into the wind first before switching the position of his feet.
He completes the switching of his feet, allowing him to face the other direction as he continues the turn.
He then brings the kite back down to accelerate as he finishes the turn.
This is the position where Max is at right when the timer is about to go off.
A good start allows Max to have the space to move in any direction he wants without being restricted by his rivals.
The early race is where people are finding and fighting for positions. This is the section where the most mistakes happen because it is where they are under the most pressure. Sometimes, Max would find himself in a position where he is slightly behind the other kitefoilers.
Max would do his best to overtake them. He would be trying to get as far away from his competitors as possible and minimise mistakes, resulting in him getting relatively far in front and avoiding getting caught in crashes.
In the late race, he is aiming to either consolidate his position or attempt some clean overtakes for an ideal finish.
This ensures that he sees out the race with the best position possible.
How Max has become
one of the world’s best
kitefoilers
He trains six to seven days on the water every week, with each session lasting about 2½ hours. This takes place in various countries including Croatia – where his training partner and coach are from – Egypt, Italy, Brazil, China, France and Spain. This is where he finds good water conditions, consistent wind and it is also where most events are held.
Training on the water consists mainly of practice races to simulate the racing environment and to fine-tune techniques that he may use in a race.
Getting exposure to different situations can also help with decision-making in races. For example, Max was faced with a hard decision to make during a race en route to claiming his maiden World Championships title in 2023.
In a split-second decision, Max intentionally crashed into the water to avoid a collision with his competitor Toni Vodisek, who had suffered the same fate just seconds before.
Physical training
In addition to training on the water, Max also does a gym or cardio session every alternate day. This is key as kitefoiling relies largely on core and leg muscles, with riders squatting for the majority of a 12-minute race.
There are various exercises that Max uses to train these specific muscle groups. Building his core involves exercises such as planks with some weights. For example, he does side planks while holding 18kg for 30 seconds.
To strengthen his leg muscles, Max does different variations of squats. One exercise that is part of his training regimen is squatting with 150kg on his back and doing 10 repetitions.
Mental training
The mental aspect of the sport is equally important. As much as he focuses on strategy and tactics, a lot of time is also spent talking and thinking about it.
Managing nerves and stress is something that Max constantly works on as an elite athlete and his experience in dealing with high-pressure and stressful situations has helped him.
During a race, he tries not to think about technical issues and just reminds himself of one key thing: achieving consistency.
After a race, he talks to his team about how he felt and why, and what he was thinking. He speculates about why he thought about things in a certain way, and how all this was beneficial to or affected his performance.
His current performance
The lead-up to the Olympics has gone well, with Max wrapping up the first part of the season by retaining his World Championships crown. The final leg of preparations for the Olympics will see him train mainly in Marseille and take part in some coach-organised regattas ahead of the quadrennial Games.
Swipe the panoramic video below to experience how Max travels on water from different viewpoints.