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Lead Stories: Sunday, November 23, 2008

Quote of the Day: 5/6/08

Posted May 6th, 2008 at 8:30 AM by Hariz Siddiqui

Section: Motivation, Famous Quotes

“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”

- Lance Armstrong

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Quote of the Day: 5/5/08

Posted May 5th, 2008 at 8:30 AM by Jeanie Rebb

Section: Motivation, Famous Quotes

“Sports serve society by providing vivid examples of excellence.”

- George F. Will

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ESPN, Nightline & GMA to Air Special Features, Present New Evidence in the Oscar Pistorius Controversy on April 15

Posted April 9th, 2008 at 4:00 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Motivation, Track & Field, Columns, Olympics, SPOTLIGHT

One of the most talked-about sports stories of the past year is the controversy surrounding Oscar Pistorius, the bi-lateral amputee sprinter who is trying to make a bid for the Olympics and is appealing the IAAF’s ruling that he has a technical advantage. Ossur, the maker of those Cheetahs, invites everyone to form their own opinion based on new information as presented by ESPN’s E:60, Good Morning America, Nightline, and ESPN Magazine.

Looking for insights into this game-changing issue that raises scientific, ethical and philosophical questions, and for the past three months, ESPN’s investigative journalists have traveled the globe to learn more. They interviewed Oscar, his family, coach, prosthetist, friends, competitors, lawyers, and Ossur, too. They also interviewed Professor Bruggemann, the German doctor who originally tested him on behalf of the IAAF.

What to see on April 15th:

• Good Morning America will air a segment between 7-9am
• ESPN’s E:60 will broadcast a 10-minute feature between 7-8pm.
• Nightline will look into the story at 11:30pm.

In addition, ESPN Magazine’s April 21st cover story will delve into Oscar’s case.
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Keeping Kids Injury-Free
This Fall Season

Posted November 14th, 2007 at 7:00 AM by Megan Hueter

Section: Health & Fitness, Injury & Rehab

With the fall season umong us, many children are enjoying after school sports. While sports are a great way to develop strong bones, there is a higher risk for injuries, especially since their bones and muscles are still growing. The American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons recommends that parents and coaches take precautions to minimize the risk of injuries.

The 2006 statistics from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission outlines the extent of sports injuries in children under 18.

Read the rest of this entry at our partner site: HesFit.com

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Quote of the Day: 11/2/07

Posted November 2nd, 2007 at 6:00 AM by Hariz Siddiqui

Section: Motivation, Famous Quotes

“Sports do not build character. They reveal it.”

- Matthew Campbell

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Breaking the gender barrier in athletics: 35 years of Title IX

Posted July 6th, 2007 at 1:00 PM by Bridget Sullivan

Section: News & Results, Columns, SPOTLIGHT

Active.com has put together a wonderful page devoted to celebrating 35 years of Title IX. Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972 is the landmark legislation that bans sex discrimination in schools, whether it be in academics or athletics. Although athletics has created the most controversy regarding Title IX, its gains in education and academics are notable. Before Title IX, many schools refused to admit women or enforced strict limits.

The following articles take a closer look at Title IX and the breaking down of gender barriers in athletics.

A Look Back at Title IX with Joan Benoit Samuelson By Skip Cleaver
Joan Benoit Samuelson is one of the all-time greatest distance runners in the world. Best known for her Olympic gold medal in the Women’s Marathon in 1984–the first women’s Olympic Marathon–she also set world and American records. She won the Boston Marathon twice, setting course records both times along with a world best in 1983. Tremendously personable, she remains one of the most popular and highly recognized distance athletes in the world.

Read the rest at our partner site: HerActiveLife.com

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Reasons to Run Boston

Posted April 13th, 2007 at 6:59 AM by Martin Kennedy

Section: Motivation

Why run Boston? Check out this 5 minute video and it’ll be crystal clear

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Renaissance Athlete: Micheline Ostermeyer

Posted March 15th, 2007 at 11:30 AM by Jeanie Rebb

Section: Columns, SPOTLIGHT

It takes so much work and time to train to become outstanding at any endeavor that there are very few people who have risen to the top of the world’s stage in more than one field. At age 26, Micheline Ostermeyer of France won Olympic gold medals in both the shot put and discus, and a third place bronze medal in the high jump.

She was the niece of composer Lucien Paroche, and three months before the Olympic games she graduated with high honors from the Paris Conservatory of Music. She said that piano gave her strong biceps, and a sense of rhythm. She celebrated her victories with a recital of Beethoven at France’s team headquarters and went on to become a famous concert pianist.

Her accomplishments compare with Paul Robeson, who was an All-American football player at Rutgers, a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Cornell and a great opera singers.
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Podcast 16: Exclusive interview w/ Oscar Pistorius, the amputee runner on the verge of making history

Posted February 16th, 2007 at 6:00 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Motivation, Success Stories, Track & Field, Columns, Success Stories, Olympics, Special Features, Podcasts

The Final Sprint and I have the utmost respect and admiration for handicapped athletes and are proud to be official sponsors of the Challenged Athletes Foundation. These gifted individuals demonstrate incredible resolve and the power of the human spirit by successfully participating, competing and excelling in athletics despite their physical disabilities.

Today’s podcast features an interview with one such hero and TFS’s February 2007 Success Story honoree. His name is Oscar Pistorius and he is a 20-year old South African Paralympic runner known as “The Fastest Thing on No Legs”.

After having both of his legs amputated below the knee when he was only 11-months old, Oscar has exemplified the astounding spirit of these challenged athletes. Oscar is sponsored by Ossur and with the aid of their Cheetah Flex-Foot prosthetics, Oscar has ran his his way to multiple Paralympic gold medals and set world records in the 100, 200 and 400m events. He has also gone on to break his own world records 19 times in a single year and has successfully competed against able-bodied runners.

Having already attained unparalleled success, Oscar is now on the verge of making history once again – but this time by becoming the first amputee to ever compete in the able-bodied Olympics.

However, even if Oscar is able to run a qualifying time, he could still sadly be denied the opportunity to compete in the Olympics because he has attracted a number of critics who believe his prosthetics provide him with an unfair advantage. No able-bodied sports federation, including the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has ever been forced to consider rules for athletes with prosthetics. As the IOC struggles to make decision, Oscar has kept his head-up and pushed forward despite the uncertainty that surrounds his future.

Download the podcast to hear my exclusive interview with Oscar where we discuss his life, historic achievements, the controversy, how he deals with the critics and the very real possibility of him redefining society’s concept of human potential.

Listen In
[MP3] Direct Download (Right click, select “save as”).
[RSS] Add The Final Sprint Podcast RSS feed to your RSS reader to have the show delivered to you

Host: Adam Jacobs
Guest: Oscar Pistorius
Producer: Greg Cherniet
Music: Ryan Ahlwardt & Darnell Perkins
File size: 29.4MB
Length: 00:42:55

Interested in featuring The Final Sprint Podcast on your site, blog or My Space page? Click here to learn how!

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Help prevent injuries by performing proprioception & balance training

Posted January 17th, 2007 at 8:00 AM by Richard Quinn

Section: Running & Training, Injury & Rehab, Training Tips, Health & Fitness, Injury & Rehab, Exercise

Many regard running as a warm up activity or as a simple cardiovascular exercise. People will often go to the track and/or their favorite course and immediately launch into an intense workout without thinking twice about it. It is not uncommon for people to skip their pre- and post- workout stretching; one reason why runners suffer so many preventable injuries and never reach the top of their potential.

Training for running is no different than training for any other sport. In order to stay healthy and reach peak performance, an athlete must train in a variety of ways and be conscious of keeping their body healthy and free of injuries. Two types of training that are increasing in popularity and can help a runner achieve these goals are: proprioception and balance training.

Although proprioception conditioning has long been used for rehabilitation, it is also now being utilized as a method of injury prevention. Proprioception is an automatic sensitivity mechanism in the body. This mechanism sends a message through your central nervous system for analysis. The information is then relayed to the rest of the body about how to react and with what amount of tension. This can be seen in everyday activities, such as the ability to walk though a dark room without losing balance.
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