Pistorius Wins Appeal,
Debate Ensues
Posted May 20th, 2008 at 11:30 AM by Stephanie Lowe
Section: News & Results, Motivation, Success Stories, Track & Field, Olympics
After the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned a ban Friday by the International Association of Athletics Federations, double-amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius can compete in the Beijing Olympic Games. What does this mean for the future of track and field?
Pistorius, 21, is a South African athlete who has excelled in Paralympic competition. He holds Paralympic world records in the 100, 200 and 400-meter events. His strongest event is the 400, in which he has a personal-best time of 46.56 seconds.
The Olympic “A” standard in the 400 is 45.55 seconds. After the debate over allowing Pistorius to compete against able-bodied athletes, will he even make the team? If not, he still has a shot at the South African 4×400-meter relay team, which does not require a qualifying time. He also plans to compete at the 2008 Paralympic Games, in Beijing, Sept. 6-17.
“Oscar Pistorius is a determined and gutsy athlete who will now no doubt put all his energy into reaching the qualification standards for the Olympic Games,” the International Olympic Committee said. “If he makes it we would be delighted to welcome him.”
Although it would make an inspirational story if he did, Pistorius is not expected to medal in Beijing. To put things in perspective, the U.S. has already had three men sprint the distance in less than 45 seconds in 2008. The world record is Michael Johnson’s time 43.18 seconds. However, performance has not been Pistorius’s number-one priority…yet.
“A lot of the time we’ve had this year we’ve devoted to the court case,” Pistorius said. “My hopes are very big for the Olympics for 2008. I think the time period at the moment is very short. Obviously, I have the opportunity, so I am not going to let it go . . . but it is going to be very difficult in order to run those times.”
Even if Pistorius does not qualify this year, he is already looking at London 2012. The appeal has opened the door for other disabled athletes to compete at the highest level.
“I am ecstatic,” Pistorius said. “When I found out, I cried. It is a battle that has been going on for far too long. It’s a great day for sport. I think this day is going to go down in history for the equality of disabled people.”
After watching Pistorius finish second in his heat against able-bodied athletes at a 2007 Golden League meet in Rome, his critics were not as ecstatic. Pistorius had a slower start, but his closing speed over the last 100-meters was suspect. The argument is that his carbon-fiber “Cheetah Flex-Foot” prosthetics gave him an unfair advantage since the other athletes’ muscles tired at the end of the race due to lactic acid build-up.
With that theory, would Pistorius be a better long-distance runner? It is a valid argument, but there are not many amputee marathoners. When Gert-Peter Brueggemann tested the limbs for the IAAF, which prompted the ban, he found that they did not show as much of an advantage during slower running. How many able-bodied runners cut their legs off in favor of artificial limbs? Then again, with the plague of performance enhancing drugs in the sport, some cynics believe athletes will do anything to have an advantage.
The problem with the theory that amputees have an unfair advantage is that it so far has only applied to Pistorius’s case. Disabled athletes have competed in the Olympics in the past, including U.S. two-time Olympian Marla Runyan, who is legally blind. Fellow South African amputee Natalie Du Toit recently qualified for the Beijing Olympics in the 10000-meter open water swim. The Paralympic Games have existed for nearly half a century. Pistorius is the only disabled athlete whose performances have stirred this much debate.
Fairness is not easily measured in athletics. Every athlete has individual strengths and weaknesses depending on many factors. No two athletes are the same, but they should have an equal opportunity to achieve their dreams. Pistorius will hopefully get his chance Aug. 8-24 at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
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Tags: 400m, 4x400m relay, amputee, amputee athletes, Beijing, beijing olympics, Court of Arbitration for Sport, IAAF, International Association of Athletics Federations, International Olympic Committee, IOC, olympic games, olympics, Oscar Pistorius, Paralympic Games, paralympics, south african sprinter, sprinter
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The Final Sprint
If Oscar really does have an advantage over 400 meter runners over the second half, presumably because he doesn’t tire in the same way, then it would be interesting to see him run the 800 meters.
He’d still be essentially sprinting, but the benefit to him would seemingly be even greater than in the 400 meters. My guess is that, if slower paces really do not confer an advantage, then anything above the 1500 would see a steep decline in whatever advantage he has over other runners.
As we saw from the video of his Rome race, though, something is different about Oscar because he’s able to implement a pacing strategy that no one in history has been able to execute.
May 20th, 2008 at 8:55 pmI’m sure all South Africans in Europe as well as back home will be rooting for Oscar Pistorius to bring home the gold!
My endless admiration goes out to this man for his persistence, dedication and will!
May 22nd, 2008 at 4:53 am