The Singapore Sailing Federation (SingaporeSailing) announced today that they have accepted the resignation of sailor Maximilian Soh, 19, from SingaporeSailing’s Olympic sailing programme and Project 0812.

Maximilian Soh, 2005 SEA Games and 2006 Asian Games Gold medalist, and officials from SingaporeSailing have been in discussions over the past three months over Maximilian’s future and continuity in the SingaporeSailing’s Olympic sailing programme and Project 0812.

Singapore’s current Olympic sailing programme is based on the training regimes of the world’s top sailing nations. To achieve at the Olympic level in the modern age requires a highly active, on-water training and competitive programme and physical fitness programme, especially in the year leading up to the 2008 Olympic Games. To be competitive at the Olympic level requires a high travel component – training and racing in a variety of overseas venues in a variety of wind and wave conditions against the world’s best sailors.

Based on this kind of training regime, our 470 men’s pairs were, for the first time, able to qualify in the first round of the Olympic qualifiers in July in Cascais, Portugal.

Maximilian has expressed to SingaporeSailing several times that he has had differences with various aspects of the programme, like travel and training requirements.

With the 2008 Olympic Games less than a year away, SingaporeSailing’s Olympic programme is continuing at full intensity. SingaporeSailing, together with Maximilian, have agreed that it will not be in both parties’ interests for Maximilian to continue in the programme at this stage. Maximilian has registered his intent for enlistment for National Service.

Said SingaporeSailing’s Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Sanders, “We accept Maximilian’s decision with sadness. Maximilian has the natural talent for sailing and we are now refocusing our attention on him for the 2010 Asian Games and 2012 Olympic Games where we hope he will be a top class performer.

“Our sailors have qualified for a berth in the 470 men event for 2008 Olympics. The 470 women, Laser and Laser Radial sailors are presently in Australia undergoing intensive training and preparations for the next qualifying events to take place early next year.  Our aim is qualify in these three events.

“We have the strategies in place and the task before us is to execute them, to fulfill Singapore’s Olympic aspirations and deliver the results.”

The second qualifying events are:

470 World Championship – 21 to 30 January 2008 in Victoria, Australia
Laser Standard World Championship – 5 to 13 February 2008 in Terrigal, Australia
Laser Radial World Championship – 15 to 20 March 2008 in Auckland, New Zealand