The Year 7 pupil, who prevailed at the Epic Ocean Swim in Taupo in his age group, is a breaststroke merchant in the 50m, 100m and 200m distances.
"I'm probably more of a hundy man at the moment," he says, relishing making new friends and enjoying the ground fitness swimming provides for any sport.
He competed at the national junior championship at the Millennium Institute pool in Auckland in February under the banner of the Sundevils club.
The youngster, who won silver in the boys' 200m breaststroke race at the Wellington nationals last year and bronze in the 50m one, has been competing since he was 8 and takes lessons now from Hastings-born Olympian Daniel Bell, 25, at Clive pool.
"I had pneumonia that year so it was a pretty tough time," he says, revealing he trimmed his events down to three because he was feeling unwell but didn't know he had pneumonia until after he returned from the nationals.
While parents Dee and Peter Lansdown "copped some flak" for letting him compete, she says their son had put so much hard work into his preparation they felt compelled to let him have a good go following his top ranking.
"As kids they are passionate about their sport," says Dee, who will accompany her son this weekend like other parents of the 36 chosen ones.
It hasn't been easy for Dee, a Lumsden kindergarten teacher, and Peter, a drill mechanic plying his trade in West Africa.
"They've played a very big part.
"Mum gets me around places and to training on time even though she works late," Michael says, making swim trainings at 6am before lessons or 6pm after school.
Dee counts her blessings that Hereworth School does trainings for other codes and extracurricular activities during school hours.
With Michael's grandmother the nearest relative living in Dannevirke, she is appreciative of excellent neighbours who help her out in Havelock North.
For the record, Michael is the rugby captain of the C grade Hastings East team and plays for the Hereworth second XV.
With the advent of summer, he rolls his sleeves up for the school second XI.
Add to that swimming for the Waimarama Surf Lifesaving Club and the Hereworth choir group commitments and you start getting a clearer picture of how hectic Michael's schedule is throughout the year.
"He's privileged to go to Hereworth School and still get everything done," says Dee, resigned to time to return a verdict on whether all his efforts will pay off.
Michael is grateful to his father, when he isin the country on a break from his work commitments, to chauffeur him from club to club and pay for the lessons.
"He's certainly not out there to do anything he doesn't want to but kids need to be busy rather than sitting on the couch and idle looking at other things," his mother says.
Perhaps the biggest hurdle for Michael, his mother says, has been a "dropped right shoulder" due to a delivery oversight when he was born that impedes his ability to raise his elbow high enough when making his strokes in the water.
However, Bell, a 2008 and 2012 Olympian who specialised in butterfly and breaststroke events, has been making progress in strengthening that area.
"Michael has had to retrain the brain," she says, after he admits "it's amazing how weak it is when I'm actually right-handed".
For Michael, the biggest source of motivation comes from three-time Fina World Championship Kiwi representative Cara Baker who lives in the Gold Coast.
"She's my cousin. In my first Taupo epic ocean swim she finished first and after that we had a race to a buoy," she says of the multiple New Zealand open-water champion.
"She tells me that if I keep trying I'll succeed so she's been my inspiration," he says of the 25-year-old who represents the Pakuranga club in Auckland.
Medallist Loader, in his maiden appearance at today's Jetstar camp, hopes the next wave of Olympians will emerge from the 36 swimmers this weekend.
Rio Olympic hopefuls Charlotte Webby and Nathan Capp, who were recently ordained national ocean swim champs, are also in the equation with Aussie open-water exponent Michael Shiel.
The youngsters will be mentored in pool and ocean swimming over three days in the fourth such camp that has ushered 127 children through elite sessions.
With several sets of siblings making the cut to the camp, Jetstar head honcho Grant Kerr says that reflects family commitment to the code.
"Our team is looking forward to welcoming back some familiar faces to the camp and also welcoming the new members of the squad in the hope they come away with both inspiration and some great memories," Kerr says.
NZ Ocean Swim Series event director Scott Rice saluted the airline's backing to nurture talent.
"It is support like this that will make the difference between New Zealand excelling on the world stage rather than simply turning up to compete over the next decade," says Rice, a former national representative swimmer.
SUPER SQUAD
The 36 nine to 13-year-old elite swimmers jetting off to Auckland for the Jetstar Super Swim Squad this weekend:
Auckland: Aimee Oswald, Danielle Asiata, Daniel Tasker, Ella Crowe, Gabrielle Doyle, Hannah Milne, James Donovan, Janaye Burns, Koen Dettling, Natalie Burke, Sophie Robb and Sophie Spencer.
Bay of Plenty: Henry Scholes, Kasha Stokes, Liam Shanahan, Daniel Shanahan, Matthew Wagstaff, Renee Carey, Te Maewha Rikihana, Tarquin Magner, Talitha McEwan
Wellington: Lauryn Collins, Pierce Collins, Harrison Collins, Sam Kilduff, Paige Kilduff, Max Drummond, Sophie Irving, Tamrah Titcombe.
Christchurch: Emma Mason, Hugo Tresfield, Oliver Aikawa and Thomas Macgibbon.
Hawke's Bay: Michael Lansdown.
Dunedin: Olivia Andrew.
Waikato: Tyler Tapper.
