The Real Science of Sport Podcast

Support the Science of Sport - become a supporter, show your support, keep us ad free, and you get access to the best sports science community around!Show NotesIn this Spotlight, we kick off with cycling, and wonder whether we're seeing a tactical evolution in cycling in response to long-range attacks. We also talk about Group 2 syndrome, and why elite cyclists could be a behavioural economist's ideal cohort. Cycling safety is in the Spotlight, after the inquest into the death of Muriel Furrer concludes, and new devices over-promise on risk reduction and head impact measurement.In athletics, Josh Kerr is going for a mile world record, and it'll actually be legitimate, while teen phenom Gout Gout is in the news, though not for winning this time. We discuss how misplaced the general expectation of teenage progress is, and why we may be setting young talent up to fail, no matter how it succeeds. Speaking of failure, Albert Korir failed three drugs tests and confessed, and is now serving a ban. Do we even care?And finally, another teenage phenom is in the news, as Indian 15-year old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi smashed a 15-ball half century to go with a 35-ball century last year. He's now old enough to play for India. But should he? That's a different question...LinksArticle on the Muriel Furrer inquestA device claims to measure head impact to protect MTBersJosh Kerr going for the mile World RecordGout Gout beaten in what is described as an "upset", but that betrays unreasonable expectationsArticle on Albert Korir's positive tests and banWhy Sooryavanshi should not be fast-tracked into the Indian T20 squad Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mike Posthumus, Director of Performance for Specialized’s off‑road teams and exercise scientist with a PhD. He explains building performance teams and the race tactics that break punchy XC riders. He describes fueling, recovery routines and support logistics for multi‑day endurance racing. He also recounts the dramatic mechanicals, a massive 2‑hour chase effort and how complementary rider physiology wins tough mountain bike races.

A deep dive into the IOC's new female-only policy and the rationale behind strict eligibility rules. They unpack proposed SRY gene screening, diagnostic steps, and a lifetime eligibility passport. The conversation covers past policy failures, sport-by-sport fragmentation, safety concerns in combat sports, and how federations and grassroots programs might respond.

A fast breakdown of the IOC's new policy making women's sport exclusively female and introducing SRY gene screening. Discussion of how this reverses past, more permissive rules and why fairness and safety are now prioritized. They trace the policy's history, high-profile catalysts, enforcement questions, and possible loopholes for specific diagnoses.

A deep dive into therapeutic use exemptions, including why some sports show unusual TUE patterns and which drugs top the list. A cycling segment celebrating Pogacar's striking win and debating race fairness. Discussion of shorter women's stages at the Cape Epic and its rationale. Recaps from the World Indoor Championships and a surprise 50m swimming world record. Flag football upsets highlight sport specificity.

They debate Milano–San Remo tactics and how Pogacar might blunt van der Poel with sustained high-power climbs. Rugby’s Six Nations finishes and concussion/headgear dilemmas get a heated look. Marathon drama includes a controversial 2:10 run and a photo-finish wrong turn. New research on cardiac arrest risk in final race kilometers and swim-related risks in triathlon sparks a physiological deep-dive.

Discussion of rugby welfare, tackle counts and whether concussion screening and tech are catching head injuries properly. A dive into endurance sport fuel use and why athletes 'hit the wall' in long races. Debate over cycling anti-doping pressure and efforts to catch high-profile cheaters. Questions about whether historic athletics records tainted by doping should be wiped.

A lively wrap of the Milan Winter Games, calling out standout performances across skiing, biathlon, figure skating and sliding sports. They debate ski-wax tech, relay value, and safety after high-profile injuries. Brazil’s first winter gold and broadcasting wins like drone coverage get applause. The conversation finishes with ratings, regrets, and a look toward future Games.

Become a Supporter - it's worth it!Enjoying the Real Science of Sport? Show your support with a monthly pledge, become a Member of our Supporters Club, and get way more value from the discussions after the shows, in our world class community chat rooms!Show notesThe Winter Olympics are a weekend from concluding, and so much has happened, it's been hard to keep up. But we try! In this show, we look at the Nutella doping defence of an Italian biathlete. We discuss the dramatic performance of favourite Ilia Malinin, who confessed to "traumatic thoughts" before his ill-fated free-skate performance in Milan.There was no scoring controversy in that men's figure skating programme, but there have been in other events - Ice Dance and Big Air were affected by allegations of nationalistic bias, and then in the moguls, there was tie for gold, leading Ross to wonder about the credibility of a scoring system that uses subjective scoring to produce a tie down to the 1/100th of a point. Just share the gold, we reckon!One athlete who has had no problems, either with pressure or opponents, is Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, now the most decorated Winter Olympian ever, and basically unbeatable in shorter races. Can he deliver the 50km too? Another who has delivered on the promise is Jordan Stolz, though he was denied the 1500m speed skating gold. Reports of his cycling process have led to speculation that he could have a great career in cycling, should he fancy it. We discuss the barriers to that transition, and wonder how he might go about it.Away from the Games, there's an indoor world record in the 800m, which augurs well for Keely Hodgkinson's longer term aspirations of the outdoor World Record, and which puts Femke Bol's aspirations into perspective. The head to head rivalry may be a season or two away - we explain why Bol needs more than a single season.And Finally, we return to the snow, where Ski Mountaineering made its debut at the Olympics and left us feeling considerably underwhelmed and disappointed in the structure of the event.LinksThe Nutella defense - report on Rebecca Passler's doping caseThe CAS 'non-decision' on Passler's case, but with a few details of what was being argued in her defenceA New York Times article on Ostarine and accidental doping ($ paywalled)The research paper that arose out of the "sweat contamination" defence against an ostarine positive testArticle on Malinin's free skate dramaDavid Epstein's article on Malinin and chokingJordan Stolz the cyclist: An article discussing his prospects on two wheelsHodgkinson's 800m World Indoor Record Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lesley McKenna, three-time Winter Olympian turned coach and researcher, studied how action-sports athletes develop skill and manage risk. She discusses park and pipe culture, the Risk Aesthetic Framework, training tools like trampolines and airbags, judging and trick invention, and the tension between Olympic systems and action-sports authenticity.