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.”
“SPECIAL FLAVOUR” OF COMPETITION
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.