SINGAPORE — Always smiling and relaxed, Farris Rahman’s carefree nature mirrors his ability to be extraordinarily nimble with his skateboard.

His signature move, the Superman Finger Twist, which he performed at the 2012 Shanghai X Games, is an example of creativity coupled with agility and strength, and what almost seems like the ability to freeze time.

Blitzing off one ramp into the air, he yanks his skateboard from under his feet, spins it around before himself, collects it with unbelievable ease, and slips it back beneath his feet before making a perfect landing on another ramp.

Amazingly, all this is done in a little more than a second.

Just how does he do it? Even Farris isn’t too sure.

“I guess it’s all about instinct,” the 18-year-old Republic Polytechnic student said. “I mean when you’re in the midst of it all, you can’t really think. You just react. It’s mainly muscle memory, I suppose.”

He may have said that with a shrug but Fariss’ skateboarding skills are so stunning that even Red Bull Singapore is impressed.

That is why the energy drink brand recently signed on the teenager. Fariss now joins local wakeboarder Sasha Christian as one of two Singapore extreme sports athletes in Red Bull’s stable.

The sponsorship means Farris will now get free access to Red Bull’s development programmes and their state-of-the-art diagnostics and training centre in Salzburg, Austria.

“Farris is at the top of his game on the local level,” said a Red Bull spokesman. “But we see a lot of international potential in him so we want to maximise his opportunities. This includes access to the X Games and other tournaments.”

Farris cites family support as the biggest catalyst to his success.

Said the teenager who is the third of four sons: “It’s really down to the support I’ve received from my family.

“My dad really deserves most of the credit. Without him bringing me and my brothers out to skate and encouraging us all the way, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”

What irks him though are the misconceptions that many people still have about skateboarders — that they are usually rebellious punks.

“I guess there’s still this stigma about skateboarding. It’s an extreme sport so I guess it can sometimes be viewed as a sort of rebellious activity,” he said.

His 54-year-old father, Abdul Rahman Abdul Gahni, was quick to dismiss these stereotypes.

He said: “You have to think out of the box, out of the city, out of Singapore. It’s a global thing. If only you saw the support people overseas had for this little Singaporean boy ... I’m so touched when I see people from a different country cheering my boy on. That makes my day.”

Ranked among the top 50 skateboarders in the world, Farris’ future plans include making a move to the United States and making skateboarding a career.

“I could probably make skateboarding a career there,” he said. “There are always competitions in the US and you don’t get paltry S$200 prizes over there — you get to win cars and houses!”