Performance director Mike Posthumus combines data, psychology, and strategy to keep Specialized at the sharp end of World Cup racing.
Mike Posthumus, Zac Williams
Koretzky, Blevins, Vidaurre. Blevins, Vidaurre, Boichis. These were the podiums of the opening two rounds of the 2025 XCO World Cup in Brazil. The theme? Specialized Factory Racing dominated the men’s races. No non-Specialized rider reached the podium until the third round back in Europe, and a non-Specialized win would have to wait until the fourth round.
Inside the team, the results weren’t seen as a surprise so much as validation of the work already underway. They were the result of long-term investment in athletes, which paid off handsomely in 2025. Behind the scenes is performance director Mike Posthumus. Since joining in 2022, he has been responsible for aligning training, support, and long-term strategy across the team.
Who is Mike Posthumus?
Before joining Specialized Factory Racing, Posthumus earned a PhD in exercise science at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, where he remains as an associate professor. He is also a director and senior advisor at the coaching business Science to Sport alongside Jeroen Swart – who is also head of performance at UAE Team Emirates-XRG – and John Wakefield, director of coaching and sports science at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe. There, Posthumus helps cyclists, runners, and triathletes optimise training through testing, data, and nutrition. He became known for translating physiological data into practical training decisions, including linking power data and training volume with fatigue and recovery to map training adaptations.
Alongside his position at Specialized he remains an associate professor in exercise science.
With the Specialised Factory XC Team, his role as performance director covers coaching oversight, nutrition, physiology support, and long-term athlete development. He functions less as a traditional coach and more as a performance architect, ensuring every rider aligns with the team’s philosophy and practices, working closely with team manager Tara Lazarski and Scott Jackson, head of sports marketing, who is also instrumental in creating the vision for the team.
While he directly coaches some of the team, riders are also welcome to be coached externally. For instance, Haley Batten is coached by Kristin Armstrong, Martín Vidaurre by Bent Rønnestad, Adrien Boichis by Dan Lorang, and Laura Stigger by Rupert Scheiber. Posthumus explained, “all of these coaches form part of each rider’s respective performance team,” with Posthumus acting as a performance liaison to ensure the coaching being delivered aligns with the team goals.
Designing performance, not just training
At a time when elite sport – and cross-country mountain biking in particular – feels dominated by short-term decisions, Posthumus and the team have their sights set far beyond the immediate horizon. While long-term planning in sport is often measured in just a season or two, Specialized Factory Racing is thinking beyond the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics with the team vision stretching as far as the 2032 Brisbane Games. The strategy is deliberate: give rising athletes time and space to develop within a system that reduces short-term pressure, allowing them to hit their stride when it matters most.
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