Who is Oscar Pistorius

You can't say that you can't do something. If you want to do something and you put your mind to it, then you'll get it done. --Oscar Pistorius

Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius was born to Henke and Sheila Pistorius on 22 November 1986 in Sandton, Gauteng Province, South Africa. He was born with congenital absence of the fibula in both legs. Pistorius was only 11 months old when his parents made the wrenching decision to have his limbs amputated below the knee. Making the decision to amputate at such a young age may have assisted Oscar to develop his abilities, as Oscar says he never really knew anything different.

As a child he announced to his father that one day he would play in the Super 8 rugby event, and this would characterize his future approach to life. He attended the Pretoria Boys' High School where, between the ages of 11 and 13, he played rugby union in the school's third XV team, water polo and tennis. He also played water polo and tennis at the state level. In addition, Pistorius took part in club Olympic wrestling.

After a serious rugby knee injury, he was introduced to running in January 2004 while undergoing rehabilitation, and "never looked back".

Sources: Ossur, Wikipedia

"You're not disabled by the disabilities you have, you are able by the abilities you have." --Oscar Pistorius

Known today as the "Blade Runner" and "The fastest man on no legs", Oscar has gone on to rewrite the record books for Paralympic sprinters.

In January 2004, Pistorius switched to track after shattering his right knee on the rugby field. Just 17 years old, he ran the 100m in an open competition at the Pilditch stadium in his hometown of Pretoria after training for only two months. He ran it in 11.51 seconds; the world record was 12.2.

A mere eight months later, Pistorius raced alongside single-amputee sprinters Marlon Shirley and Brian Frasure at the 2004 Athens Paralympics. Creating a sensation in the athletics world, he took the silver medal behind Shirley in the 100m. He also won gold in the 200m, breaking the world record with a time of 21.97 seconds. This made him the first amputee ever to run the 200m in under 22 seconds. He went home with four world records.

At the South African Championships in March 2005, Pistorius ran the 400m in the Open/Able-Bodied category and placed 6th in the final competition. That same year, he also won the gold in both the 100m and 200m while representing South Africa in the Paralympic World Cup in Manchester, England.

At the 2006 Paralympic Athletics World Championships, Pistorius won gold in the 100, 200 and 400-meter events, breaking the world record over 200 meters. On 17 March 2007, he set a disability sports world record for the 400 meters (46.56 seconds) at the South African Senior Athletics Championships in Durban. At the Nedbank Championships for the Physically Disabled held in Johannesburg in April 2007, he became the world record holder of the 100 and 200-meter events with times of 10.91 and 21.58 seconds respectively.

The IAAF subsequently invited him to run in a Grand Prix meeting in Helsinki, making him the first disabled athlete ever invited to such an event; he did not attend, however, due to school commitments. On 13 July 2007, Pistorius ran in his first IAAF-sanctioned 400-meter race at Rome's Golden Gala and finished second in run B with a time of 46.90 seconds. This was a warm-up for his appearance at the 400 meters at the Norwich Union British Grand Prix at the Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield on 15 July 2007. Pistorius took seventh place in a field of eight in wet conditions with a time of 47.65 seconds (Jeremy Wariner stumbled out of the blocks and did not finish). However, he was later disqualified for running outside his lane.

Pistorius has now broken his own world records 26 times. He is currently training to take off the 1.01 seconds necessary off his 400m time to qualify as an individual for the Beijing Olympic Games. He has been given six extra days, until July 17, to run the Olympic "A" standard. In his first race against able-bodied competition, he ran 47.78 in the 400m. He then ran 46.62 to finish 7th in the B race at the Golden Gala meet in Rome on July 11th. In his last race before the Paralympics, Oscar ran a PR of 46.25 for 400m in Switzerland on July 21st.

At the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing, Oscar started off well, winning his T44 100m prelim in 11.16. He then beat American Jerome Singleton of the US in a tight final, 11.17 to 11.20 to take the gold at 100m. He then took the 200m final in 21.67 seconds. He finished off the meet by winning the 400m final in 47.49 seconds, completing the sprint sweep.

Sources: Ossur, Wikipedia

"If they [the IAAF] ever found evidence that I was gaining an advantage, then I would stop running because I would not want to compete at a top level if I knew I had an unfair advantage." --Oscar Pistorius

Pistorius has been the subject of criticism because of claims that his artificial limbs give him an advantage over able-bodied runners. The artificial limbs in question are J-shaped carbon-fiber prosthetics called the "Cheetah Flex-Foot", manufactured by Icelandic company Össur.

One claim is that the "blades" he uses are longer than is necessary, allowing him to cover more ground in each stride. It is also said that the Cheetahs return more energy per stride without ever becoming fatigued or requiring the same "investment of energy" and that they are not subject to metabolite or lactic acid build-up that slows down ordinary athletes.

Pistorius and his coach, Ampie Louw, reject these allegations, saying that his prosthetics do not give him an unfair advantage. They have brought up disadvantages that Pistorius faces, such as rain (which leaves traction hard to attain), wind (which blows the devices sideways), and the fact that he needs more energy to start running than others. Additionally, Professor Robert Gailey of the University of Miami claimed that they return only about 80% of the energy absorbed in each stride, while a natural leg returns up to 240%, providing much more spring.

In June 2007, the IAAF amended its competition rules to include a ban on the use of "any technical device that incorporates springs, wheels or any other element that provides a user with an advantage over another athlete not using such a device". It claimed that the amendment was not specifically aimed at Pistorius.

To decide if he is running with an unfair advantage, the IAAF monitored his track performances using high-definition cameras to film his race against Italian club runners in Rome on July 13, 2007, and his 400 meters in Sheffield on July 15, 2007, at which he placed last. In Rome, the IAAF analysis revealed an unusual "pacing strategy", suggesting a difference in performance that could be explained by the advantage given by the Cheetah prosthetics.

In November 2007, German professor Gert-Peter Brueggemann began testing the artificial limbs for the International Association of Athletics Federations. His study found that Pistorius's limbs used 25% less energy than able-bodied runners to run at the same speed, and that they led to less vertical motion combined with 30% less mechanical work for lifting the body. In December, Brueggemann told Die Welt newspaper that Pistorius "has considerable advantages over athletes without prosthetic limbs who were tested by us. It was more than just a few percentage points. I did not expect it to be so clear."

Based on these findings, on January 14, 2008 the IAAF ruled Pistorius ineligible for competitions conducted under the IAAF rules, including the 2008 Summer Olympics. Pistorius has called the decision "premature and highly subjective" and pledged to continue fighting for his dream. His manager Peet van Zyl said his appeal would be based on advice from United States experts who had said that the report "did not take enough variables into consideration". Pistorius subsequently appealed against the adverse decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, Switzerland, and appeared before the tribunal at the end of April 2008.

On May 16, 2008, the CAS reversed the IAAF's ban, clearing the way for Pistorius to try and qualify for the Olympics. In its decision, it held that there was insufficient evidence that Pistorius's prosthetics provided any metabolic advantage over able-bodied runners. However, the CAS panel stressed their verdict only applied to the specific case at hand, and that the IAAF might in the future be able to prove the existence of such an advantage, with advances in scientific knowledge and tests designed and carried out to the satisfaction of Pistorius and the IAAF.

In response to the announcement, Pistorius said: "My focus throughout this appeal has been to ensure that disabled athletes be given the chance to compete and compete fairly with able-bodied athletes. I look forward to continuing my quest to qualify for the Olympics." To have a chance of representing South Africa in the individual 400-meter race, Pistorius must attain the Olympic "A" standard time of 45.55 seconds or the "B" qualifying time of 45.95 seconds if no other athlete from his country achieves the faster time.

Each national athletics federation is permitted to enter three athletes in an event if the "A" standard is met, and only one athlete if the "B" standard is met. However, Pistorius is eligible for selection as a member of the relay squad without qualifying. If Pistorius succeeds, he will become the first leg amputee to participate in the Olympic Games.

Sources: Ossur, Wikipedia, The Science of Sport

"When people ask me what it is like having artificial legs, I reply, 'I don't know. What's it like having real legs?'" --Oscar Pistorius

Championships

100m - 2004 USA Endeavor Games (11.62)
200m - 2004 USA Endeavor Games (22.71)
200m - 2004 Summer Paralympics (21.97)
100m - 2005 Visa Paralympic World Cup (11.23)
200m - 2005 Visa Paralympic World Cup (22.01)
100m - 2006 IPC World Championships (11.32)
200m - 2006 IPC World Championships (21.80)
400m - 2006 IPC World Championships (49.42)
400m - 2007 South African Senior Athletics Championships (46.56)
100m - 2007 Nedbank Championships for the Physically Disabled (10.91)
200m - 2007 Nedbank Championships for the Physically Disabled (21.58)
100m - 2008 Summer Paralympics (11.17)
200m - 2008 Summer Paralympics (21.67)

Personal Records

10.91WR - 100m
21.58WR - 200m
46.25WR - 400m - Lucerne (2008)

Sources: Ossur, Wikipedia, Beijing Paralympics