Run to Win

You may recall a couple years ago when Oscar Pistorius was banned by the IAAF from competing because they felt that his prosthetics gave him an unfair advantage over people that still had both of their legs.

This news was quite a sensation, since there seemed (at the time) to be a very good chance that Oscar would qualify for the Olympics were he given the opportunity to race. The Court of Arbitration for Sport decided that there wasn’t enough hard evidence to rule one way or another and forced the IAAF to allow him to compete.

The real question about what to do should he make it to the Olympics and medal unfortunately never came up, since Oscar’s PR of 46.25 in the 400m was 0.3 seconds too slow to allow him to go to Beijing.

There had been some evidence he had an unfair advantage but the Court of Arbitration for Sport felt that the research had been rushed and that it was biased against Oscar and wouldn’t allow it to be considered for banning him.

Two of the researchers who helped the CAS come to that conclusion were Peter Weyand and Matthew Bundle, who have continued to analyze the research data since then and have now reversed their position about whether Oscar has an advantage or not.

Because each of Pistorius’s limbs — which include the stump, the socket and the blade — are more than six pounds lighter than a biological leg would be for someone his size, it is easier for him to churn them at top speed.

Using a high-speed force treadmill, Weyand and Bundle also determined that Pistorius could keep the blade on the track longer than an able-bodied athlete keeps his foot on the track, giving Pistorius a longer push-off with each stride.

“As soon as Dr. Bundle and I analyzed those data from a year and a half ago,” Weyand said, “we immediately concluded that there was a clear and major advantage.”

My gut feeling when all this originally broke was that the prosthetics probably do give him an advantage, but my gut feeling is also that that advantage does not outweigh the disadvantages he suffers from not having any legs and having a lower blood volume than an able bodied runner.

There is no word yet on whether he is going to be banned again from competition, but I hope not. I think that most of the research is rather limited since the sample size is of one individual, and I don’t think that anybody could show the sort of speed that he has without good training and (in his case) a lifetime to adapt to not having his legs.

(More Info: NY Times)

This week last year covered a lot of news, and I answered quite a few reader questions.

• This week last year started off with The Running Shoe FAQ, which explained why runners wear specialty shoes and what makes them different from normal walking shoes.
• I answered a question from an aerobics instructor about how to treat posterior shin splints, including what they are, how to best treat them, and how to prevent them from coming back.
• I was asked “What is the difference between swiss balls and medicine balls?” by Susan. Swiss balls are the large inflatable balls that you can sit on, while medicine balls are the small weighted balls that you can use in place of dumbbells. For good measure, I also explained what a bosu ball was.
• Some friends of mine ran the Vermont 100 mile race last year for the first time, and all three have continued on for their ultramarathoning endeavors. In fact, there were 5 guys who went to Vermont last weekend to compete in this year’s event from our training group.
• On the news front, the IAAF finally agreed to work with Oscar Pistorius to determine whether or not his prosthetics give him an advantage. I also provided a new wrap up that covered stories about new Junior American records, doping at the Tour de France, Disney’s move to ban smoking in their movies, and a study that found that obesity is contagious.
• This week two years ago, I continued my series on how to ice sore muscles by explaining how to give yourself an ice massage and how to use an ice bath. I spent a little time exploring the cost of racing and how much race registration fees can cost. I also discussed how gastrointestinal problems are affected by running.
• This week three years ago, Lance Armstrong won his final Tour. I also gave some tips about proper hydration and how to time rest intervals while lifting weights.

• This week last year, I offered some advice on what to wear to a race to prevent “severing your leg at the thigh” from chafing.
• I tried to decide if it was worth running in an ultramarathon a few weeks before my next marathon. Ultimately, I decided that yes, it was a good idea.
• I shared what I learned about velomobiles after attending a Bike Commuters’ Meetup. They look like fun toys.
• On the news front, Oscar Pistorius had some troubles after running out of his lane and getting persecuted by the IAAF. There also came down the first cyclists to get charged with doping after signing the UCI charter. The Yarmouth Clam Festival had 917 finishers and went off without any problems last year
• This week two years ago, I continued my series on icing with a description of how to ice w/an ice bag. and shared my thoughts on why you should not use weightlifting gloves or belts when you work out. I shared why it was important to determine how much you should be sleeping every night. One of my more popular articles over the past couple of years explained the differences between running on a track versus running on a treadmill.
• This week two years ago, there was some trouble in the UK with cyclists getting pushed off of their bikes by passing motorists. Three years ago was even worse, when an 88 year old hit some cyclists after ignoring the police who were controlling traffic at the Clam Festival. (Along with a 5 mile run, there is a bike race.) In Germany, a 16 year old killed one of Australia’s top cyclists when she drove into the whole team while they were training.

This week last year saw a varied range of topics on the site with a good mix of tips and news.

• I began the week by looking at dancing as an alternative exercise. Unfortunately for my wife and I, we haven’t been out dancing too often since she went to law school.
• The UCI came out with an anti-doping charter, and I felt that cyclists would be foolish to sign it. On the surface, anything to discourage doping is a good thing. I just felt that this particular measure took away too many of the athlete’s rights.
• In running news, the IAAF changed their stance on Oscar Pistorius so that he could compete until they decided if he had an advantage or not.
• On the track and in a headwind, Tyson Gay ran the 2^nd fastest all-time 200m race in 19.62 seconds, about 3-tenths of a second behind the 1996 mark set by Michael Johnson.
• I reviewed Trails.com and put together a video demonstration of what you get with the website.
• This week 2 years ago, I suggested that you never go to bed hungry. During the Western States 100 (which was unfortunately canceled this year), Brian Morrison was disqualified for receiving some help from the crowd near the end. I also discussed research about whether or not bonking during training was a worthwhile pursuit or not. Two years ago was centered on marathoning, such as a book review and a website review, my list of marathon candidates for Autumn, and my discovery that I was near meeting the requirements to join the 50 States Marathon Club. I also won the Literacy 5k, which I believe has since folded.

This week last year I wrote the counterpoint to my intervals FAQ by describing answering questions about tempo runs. The tempo run is not a very well defined term and can mean different things to different people, so sometimes it helps to have a definition of what somebody means when they are talking about them when you first run with them.

In running news, there were 2 big stories. The first was that Asafa Powell had recovered from his tendonitis and was back on the track and ready to compete.

The other big story that broke was about the proposed IAAF ban on prosthetics in international competition, which was a ruling made specifically to address the case of Oscar Pistorius. I ultimately decided that prosthetics should be banned, a decision that the IAAF ultimately agreed with but then had to overturn in appeal over the past year. Now a year removed from when this whole situation began, I feel that Oscar probably does have an advantage over able-bodied athletes due to his prosthetics, but I highly doubt that any advantages he has outweigh the huge disadvantage of not having any legs or the additional blood volume that having legs would allow him.

This week 2 years ago I ran The Vermont City Marathon, followed a few days later by the Back Cove 5k.

Oscar Pistorius was found to have a mechanical advantage over able-bodied athletes last December. In January, he was banned from international competition by the IAAF, Track & Field’s governing body.

Oscar challenged the ruling before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland. They felt that the rule that was in question (IAAF Rule 144.2(e): use of any technical device that incorporates springs, wheels or any other element that provides the user with an advantage over another athlete not using such a devise) was enacted specifically with Pistorius in mind and that the results of last year’s study were biased against him.

CAS did not feel that there was enough evidence one way or the other to justify banning Pistorius from competition, which means that he is free to run in the Olympic Games this Summer if he can run a fast enough qualifying time.

IAAF President Lamine Diack has made the following comment:
“The IAAF accepts the decision of CAS and Oscar will be welcomed wherever he competes this summer. He is an inspirational man and we look forward to admiring his achievements in the future.”

I still feel that he probably does have a mechanical advantage from his “Cheetah” blades, but I also doubt that that advantage offsets the disadvantage that he has from 20% to 25% less blood volume than folks who have both legs.

If he does run, and does manage to win a medal or even set a record, then how do you handle the situation? If it takes 2 or 3 years to determine any advantages that he may or may not have, can you retroactively reach back from that point to award the proper person their honors? Or do you withhold those honors from Pistorius while you continue to do the research? Which is the more problematic situation?

For myself, I hope that he does do well. I don’t want him to beat any Americans, of course, but I’d like to see him do well behind us, if only to force the IAAF and the research scientists to come to a definitive conclusion and to stop dragging this out.

Of course, the real question now is whether or not he can even qualify to run in the Olympics or not. What are your predictions?

(More Info: IAAF)

As I wrote a month ago, the tests conducted on Oscar Pistorius‘ prosthetic legs show that he has an unfair advantage over able-bodied athletes. The IAAF have ruled and determined to uphold the study and have barred Pistorius from competition.

The IAAF endorsed studies by German professor Gert-Peter Brueggemann, who conducted tests on the prosthetic limbs and said they give Pistorius a clear competitive advantage over able-bodied runners.

“An athlete using this prosthetic blade has a demonstrable mechanical advantage [more than 30 percent] when compared to someone not using the blade,” the IAAF said.

I do not doubt that his “Cheetah” blades do give him a mechanical advantage over able-bodied athletes, but the more that I watch this case the more that I tend to doubt that the advantage he gains is enough to actually give him an advantage. It is so difficult to tell what is happening because he is literally the only athlete in this sort of a unique situation. Had he been born with every bone in his body that he was supposed to have, I have no doubt that he could possibly be contending for a spot on the Olympic team.

Pistorius and his coaches plan on challenging the ruling and will bring the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.

(Sources: IAAF – ESPN)

This past Summer, Oscar Pistorius finally convinced the IAAF to test his prosthetics to determine whether he did in fact have an advantage over able-bodied athletes or not.

The tests have been conducted, the results are in, and the prognosis: Pistorius does in fact have an advantage and will now banned from international competition. The IAAF has not actually taken an official stand, and will not make any public announcements until January 10^th. The German newspaper Die Welt, however, is reporting that the German Sport University in Cologne (Institute of Biomechanics and Orthopaedics) has indeed found that the prosthetics used by Oscar should be considered as technical aids in contravention of IAAF competition rule 144.2.

[Gert-Peter] Bruggeman, who put Pistorius through a series of tests in November at the IAAF’s request, told Die Welt: “He has a considerable advantage compared with athletes without prosthetic limbs who have undergone the same tests.

“The difference is several percentage points and I did not think the findings would be so conclusive.”

The report is not publicly available, so what aids they specifically found that Oscar Pistorius has is only speculation at this point. More details will be forthcoming in mid-January.