Anyone who has ever experienced Singapore's stifling humidity knows there are only two ways to seek refuge: stay inside air-conditioned buildings or take a dip in the pool.
Coming from a Southeast Asian economic powerhouse and benefiting from one of the world's best education systems, Singaporean kids can't be blamed if they go for the indoor option. Sports, including swimming, have sometimes been regarded as leisurely pursuits, not to be taken as seriously as mathematics and science.
But all that could be about to change thanks to Joseph Schooling, a once shy and bespectacled kid who pulled off one of the most extraordinary upsets in Olympic swimming history by beating the seemingly invincible Michael Phelps in the American's last individual race of his career.
Think about that for a moment. Phelps, the GOAT, the man who has re-written every Olympic record, winning 23 gold medals and sinking everyone who has dared to challenge him. Unconquered in his first four races at Rio, and in his last individual event before hanging up his goggles. A man who hates to lose, competing in the 100 metres butterfly, the same race he had won at the three previous Olympics.
What were the odds of anyone beating him? Let alone someone from Singapore, a tiny nation in Southeast Asia, that is smaller than some American cities, and had never won an Olympic gold medal, in any sport. Yet, in swimming's equivalent of David and Goliath, that's exactly what happened, but it was no fluke.
He may come from a swimming minnow, but Schooling is no Eric the Eel, and he didn't just beat Phelps for the gold, he beat him every step of the way. Ten years younger than Phelps, the 21-year-old beat him in the heats, beat him again in the semis, beat him off the blocks in the final, beat him over the first 50m, beat him over the last 50m, then beat the Olympic record Phelps set in Beijing, with the Singaporean winning the gold in 50.39 seconds.
Phelps was so angry with himself after losing the 200m butterfly final in London four years ago that he came out of retirement because it grated him so much and he wanted to atone for his rare defeat. Not this time. Relegated to a three-way tie for second with South Africa's Chad le Clos, himself a world and Olympic champion, and veteran Hungarian Laszlo Cseh, he swam under his lane rope and to the centre of the pool to congratulate Schooling.
No excuses. No regrets.
"I swam faster than I did four years to win (in London), Phelps said. "But Joe's tough. Obviously he's had a great year last year and had a really great last two years so hats off to him."
The crowd at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium was shocked and confused, as much by seeing Phelps beaten as the triple dead-heat, the first ever in an Olympic final.
Even Schooling was pinching himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. "I don't know what to believe, whether I actually did it or I'm still preparing my race," he said.
"I need to chill by myself, let this moment sink in, realise what I've done then I'll have a better understanding of what I've accomplished."
The celebrations in Singapore were less restrained.
A country that desperately needed a sporting hero finally had one. One of the country's most iconic statues is the Merlion, a mythical creature that has a lion's head and the body of a fish, depicting Singapore's spectacular transformation from a sleepy fishing village to one of the world's biggest commercial hubs.
Singaporean President Tony Tan flew to Rio to watch from the stands. The following morning, Schooling was already on board a jumbo jet flying back to his homeland to attend a hastily arranged victory celebration, the likes of which Singapore has never seen before.
"This is all just so crazy," Schooling said. "But it shows that people from the smallest countries in the world can do extraordinary things.
"I hope this opens more doors for sports in our country and hopefully I've set a precedent for a lot more young guys to come because I've done something that no-one in our country has done before.
"It's been a tough road, I'm not going to lie. For the first guy through the wall, it's always bloody and I had to take that blow but I'm thankful that I have the ability to accomplish this."
Schooling's win came at a perfect time for Singapore, with the government investing and actively promoting the benefits of sport. The country has head-hunted some of the best sports coaches and administrators from around the world but know that producing Olympic champions is a long and frustrating process that starts when kids are young.
Schooling was the trailblazer and there was a twist that the man he beat to win Singapore's first gold medal was Phelps.
Like a lot of his swimmers his generation, Schooling was inspired to greatness by the American and even met him when he was just 13, posing for a photograph that has been widely circulated on social media since the final.
Phelps was in Singapore in 2008 attending a training camp before the Beijing Olympics. One of the practice facilities he used was the same pool Schooling trained so the young Singaporean approached him and asked for the photo.
"I wanted to be like him as a kid," Schooling said. "So a lot of this is because of Michael."
To achieve his goals, Schooling's parents made the bold decision to send their son to Florida to the famed Bolles School, under the guidance of master swim coach Sergio Lopez. He qualified for the 2012 London Olympics and took up a scholarship at the University of Texas the following year after Singapore agreed to defer his two years of mandatory national service to let him prepare for Rio.
In 2014 he won the Asian title and last year he earned a bronze medal at the world championships before bursting into the global spotlight with his unfathomable win on the sport's biggest stage, earning the ultimate accolade from his childhood hero.
"I'm so proud of Joe," Phelps said. "I wanted to change the sport of swimming. I wanted kids to dare to dream, and that's just what Joe did."