Michiel Badenhorst, High Performance Strength and Conditioning Coach, has travelled the globe to bring his expertise, skills and success to students at St Paul’s.
Michiel Badenhorst is a high performance sports coach who has had great success in the secondary school sports arena. The 33-year-old biokineticist trained a number of students at Grey College, Bloemfontein (South Africa), to reach professional heights.
He trained six Springboks players including four current members (Jan Serfontein, Cobus Reinach, Marcel van der Merwe and Coenie Oosthuizen); three Springboks 7’s players; and six of South Africa’s under-20 players.
The level of success achieved by his former students was based on a few key factors including talent, a rigorous training programme and, most importantly, hard work.
“Students who put in the extra work behind the scenes, who are open to corrections and who never lose the enjoyment of the game are the students who succeed,” Mr Badenhorst said.
Hard work coupled with St Paul’s high performance sports programme will see the school’s sports teams and individual athletes reach new heights over the coming years.
The high performance sports programme was introduced in early 2014 with a goal of building the profile of St Paul’s sports teams and individuals through specialised coaching and mentoring.
Mr Badenhorst has come on board to implement and develop the programme with the aim of bringing the same success that he achieved in South Africa to St Paul’s Collegiate School.
“My short term goal is to help individuals get stronger and fitter and to become more well-rounded athletes,” Mr Badenhorst explained.
Another major focus will be to help sports teams achieve better results in regional and national competitions and to lift the performance of junior athletes.
“We want to see our junior athletes reach their full potential in their various sports codes and, also, in an academic setting from the emotional and strategic thinking skills that they learn through the programme.”
Mr Badenhorst sees the programme shaping the way secondary schools across New Zealand train athletes and teams.
“The long term goal is for St Paul’s Collegiate School to be a leading school in this area, for our team of specialist sports professionals to develop a programme that will set the standard for other New Zealand schools to follow,” Mr Badenhorst said.
Icebreaker
1. One thing that people are surprised to find out about me is… I’ve been an All Black supporter since 1995
2. If I could invite any four people (dead or alive) to a dinner party they would be… The best rugby backline (in my opinion): Tana Umaga, Jonah Lomu, Jeff Wilson and Christian Cullen. If someone can arrange that, I’m open on Saturday
3. The music playing in my car/on my iPod is… Any music with a beat to get me through my CrossFit Chartwell workout
4. My best achievement in life is… My wife and two kids!
5. I am currently reading… Functional Training for Sport – Boyle; Athletic Body in Balance – Cook; High Performance Sports Conditioning – Foran; and the Bible.
