Singaporean swimmer Joseph Schooling (21) won the 100m butterfly swimming event at the Rio Olympics, the first gold medal ever won by Singapore athlete.
Dunedin nutritionist Kirsty Fairbairn is Schooling’s sports nutritionist and helped shape the gold medalist’s diet on the way to winning the gold medal.
Fairbairn first came into contact with Schooling a couple of years ago, when she was in Singapore with her husband Lyndon.
A qualified sports nutritionist, Fairbairn started working in that field at the Singapore Sports Institute where she first came upon Schooling.
She said Schooling obviously had some talents.
"He was pretty good. So I telephoned his parents and got in touch with him and said what can we do together?" Fairbairn said.
After he broke nine national records at last year’s South East Asian Games and finished third at the world championships in Russia, Fairburn said the duo met to discuss what needed to be done a year out from Rio.
"We talked about getting that strength and endurance up, to be able to surge down the second 50m.
"A lot of people seem to think athletes can get away with it. They can burn off bad food through exercise ... but as a 20-year-old he had to take eating to a whole new level."
She changed his diet and got him eating a second breakfast before he went to bed.
"That gives him a really good nutrient load when [he goes] to sleep."
She had returned to Dunedin since but still kept in contact with Schooling.
Fairbairn said she knew Schooling could win a gold medal and "he knew he could do it but would he be able to do it?"
Schooling, who is based at the University of Texas, won ahead of his idol Michael Phelps and Fairbairn watched it at home with family and friends.
"I was jumping up and down around the lounge, I was really stoked for him. He is a really nice guy. A nice, polite guy who has worked really, really hard."