Interesting Olympics SPOILER (you get that this is a SPOILER, right?)

[cali]

Pistorius Advances to 400-Meter Semifinals
Jed Jacobsohn for The New York Times


Published: August 4, 2012







LONDON — Oscar Pistorius, the double-amputee runner from South Africa whose athletic achievements have stirred an international debate over the distinction between disabled and able-bodied athletes, made Olympic history on Saturday morning when he became the first amputee to compete in track at the Games.

Running in a preliminary heat for the men’s 400 meters at the Olympic Stadium, with nearly 80,000 fans cheering for him, Pistorius finished second, in 45.44 seconds, and advanced to the semifinals.

Trailing only Luguelin Santos of the Dominican Republic in the final 50 meters, Pistorius slowed as he neared the finish line, knowing he had done enough to qualify for Sunday’s semifinals, scheduled for 8:40 p.m. in London. Santos was first in the five-man heat, in 45.04.

Since Pistorius emerged several years ago as a world-class runner, questions have been raised about whether his J-shaped, carbon-fiber prosthetic blades give him an unfair advantage. Track and field’s world governing body, known by the acronym I.A.A.F., challenged his eligibility at one point and ruled that he could not compete against able-bodied athletes. That decision was overturned by an appeals court.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/05/sports/olympics/oscar-pistorius-advances-to-400-meter-semifinals.html

[Scuba]

1. Next thing you know is that all Olympic runners will be demanding they be amputated.

Let the guy run. He's an inspiration.

[cali]

2. He certainly is to me.

I read somewhere earlier this week that he wasn't expected to do this well. Advantage? I don't see it, but I'm no scientist.

[B Calm]

3. What I find simply amazing is that

some actually think that a double-amputee runner has an advantage.

Just watching this guy brings tears to my old eyes!!

[malaise]

5. Ditto

He is an inspiration

[B Calm]

7. My sister is an amputee. Her stump

use to get raw and bloody when she was on her feet very long. I can't imagine the pain this man is enduring!

[malaise]

11. Some folks just love to hate

But they don't know shit.
Give your sister a hug. I worked with amputees and they said nerves connected to the limp still caused pain and itching.
I often wonder about human beings' complete and total lack of humanity :fist bump:

[mathematic]

10. He DOES have an advantage

The IAAF banned him from competition, based on science and one physiological aspect of running. He appealed this to Court of Arbitration in Sport and the ban was overturned based on additional testing. This testing highlighted that the physiological difference that got him banned does not play a large role in 400m performance.

Case closed? Not quite. The group that did the study released their full findings a year after the ban overturn. The head scientist involved concluded that Pistorius has a massive advantage in the 400m due to OTHER physiological differences. In particular, the blades are much lighter than natural limbs and so Pistorius can swing them much faster (20%) than elite sprinters.

Now what I find amazing is that people completely unfamiliar with the science (and in many cases, the sport of track) are so willing to say that Pistorius does NOT have an advantage.

[cali]

12. if he has such an advantage

why aren't there any other amputee runners at his level? Anyone quibbling about his so-called advantage is sickening.

[mathematic]

13. Because there just aren't that many double amputees

Also, it's not just amputees. It's double amputees. As a double amputee, he has a significant advantage over single amputees (who must swing both blade and natural limb at around the same rate).

I've seen estimates of Pistorius' advantage at 6-7s. That puts him at around a 51s talent in the 400m. That's actually a pretty good time. Good enough to compete at the State level in US high schools. So you're looking for a double amputee (rare), in the prime of their athletic ability (rarer), that has been an amputee for many years (you need practice running on the blades), with the natural talent to run a 51s 400m (rare). It's not really surprising that there aren't other double amputees running as fast as Pistorius. Besides this isn't a guess. There's no need to wonder about other hypothetical athletes. Pistorius has been tested scientifically and the the final results concluded he has an advantage.

Finally, it's not a "so-called" advantage. It's an advantage. The science proves it. Anybody that rejects science for ideological reasons is sickening.

[LiberalFighter]

17. I agree.

From the mfg's own website.

In comparison, Össur's Flex-Foot Cheetah is a non-mechanized prosthetic running foot, which returns a portion of the energy stored during the loading phase of running. Studies have shown that the Flex-Foot Cheetah can return around 90% of the energy stored in it. This is far less than a normal able-bodied foot and leg, which has been shown to return 249% of the stored energy.

The device is about 18oz compared to 9 lbs for a real leg (lower leg). Probably more because he is above average height and weight.

Another issue in his favor is that he won't suffer the usual injuries a runner has that would incapacitate him for sever months or more or prevent him from training. If by chance the device breaks he can just switch it out with a replacement and he is good to go. Most injuries for runners are from the knee on down.

[Quantess]

4. What an inspiration!

[piratefish08]

6. the other athletes could amputate both their legs to gain such an advantage if they chose.

couldn't they?

[cali]

8. Now that is the perfect response.

[cthulu2016]

14. That's foolish. You could say the same thing about steroids.

[dipsydoodle]

9. Popeye takes weightlifting Gold amid doping claims.

Popeye angrily denied doping claims last night after winning a succession of gold medals at the Olympic weightlifting.

Judges became suspicious after the ageing and visibly out of condition sailor underwent a remarkable transformation moments into the competition, after ingesting a large quantity of what he later claimed was spinach in a pause between lifts.

One judge commented, ‘It was incredible – the guy ate a whole tin of this green substance – through a pipe – in about two seconds, and went on to lift almost eight times his own bodyweight in the next round. I mean, we almost ran out of weights – he was just balancing them on his finger like a bread-stick. The idea that a chain smoking, 55 year old sailor could give that kind of performance unaided simply defies belief.’

http://www.newsbiscuit.com/2012/08/01/popeye-takes-weightlifting-gold-amid-doping-claims/

In the men's Imitiating James Mason all contestants were classed as complete pants with all medals awarded posthumously to James Mason.

[cthulu2016]

15. The replies here are compassionate, but foolish

People scoff at the idea of the blades being an advantage even thought they are, quite obviously, an advantage. They are not a sufficient advantage to guarantee that this particular runner will win, but they are an advantage.

If this man had not had the birth defect he had, would he have been a world-class runner? If you assume yes, what on Earth is the basis for assuming that?

Seriously. What is the basis for thinking that?

If this man won the event in world record time would folks then concede the blades are an advantage?

And if not, what possible basis could there be for assuming they aren't?

So the argument assumes the runner will fail.

[ananda]

16. This is the Olympics story of the century!

Here's some video:

First the race to make the semifinal:

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/sports/other-sports/2012-olympics-video-south-africa-s-oscar-pistorius-aka-blade-runner-advances

Here's Oscar talking about his teammate Chad
Le Clos' swimming win. So cute!

And another race:

[Odin2005]

18. I am IN AWE of this guy!