A month ago, I asked whether prosthetics should be banned from international competition in the wake of a proposed rule change by the IAAF. I then fleshed out my own thoughts after being accused of supporting the ban and deciding that I did in fact support the ban on prosthetics.
The IAAF has since changed their stance and decided to allow Oscar Pistorius to compete until they have had a chance to decide whether or not he does have an advantage.
IAAF spokesman Nick Davies said the organisation was going to take it upon itself to work with Pistorius to conduct scientific research and tests on the runner and his prosthetics. Davies said one of the aims was developing criteria on prosthetics and other aides.
[…]
Pistorius […] is adamant his blades give him no advantage or extra energy and that his stride is no longer than anyone else’s. “They are passive devices,” he said. “If anything I am at more of a disadvantage. I have no ankles. There is less blood flowing through my body. I have no calf muscles so I have to use more muscles to do what they would. These exact feet have been used for 14 years and there has never been a paralympic sprinter to run my times.”
I think that the IAAF has found a very fair and equitable middle ground that should appease everybody. I hope that Oscar does manage to run some times fast enough to qualify for the Olympics and forces this issue to remain at the fore front. I hope that they determine that he is not aided, and that he does qualify and is allowed to run. If they determine that he is aided and don’t allow him to run, it will be that much more cruel, but if he doesn’t qualify then this issue will probably get swept up under the rug and forgotten for another 10 or 15 years. That would be a shame.
(Sources: Optimal Training – BBC)
Oscar is not as fast as he is because of his prosthesis,rather in spite of the prosthesis.
The first time that Oscar broke the 100&200m world records he did not realise it until months later. The races were in Open(vs Able body)Competition. Oscar had at that stage never run in or had been at a “Differently Able”(vs Disable)Competition,he new nothing about the Differently Able Sport competition. In fact I had to go to the IPC website to find out that Oscar’s build(his model)was refered to in the Differently Able arena, a T43-both legs amputated below the knee.
Oscar run those first races in which he broke the 100&200m world records with primative prosthesis made by a friend and I (his father),we had NO EXPERIANCE and used an old photngraph as our reference to build the 1st profile-totally a different shape.
Those first prosthesis-named blades by his elder brother Carl,could and did often brake in full flight. In those innitial months Oscar looked more like an “off road”motorx rider who refused to whear protective gear.
Oscar lost a lot of skin then,but non of his ambition to be “The Fastest!”
Thank you for this oppertunity. Many truly amazing facts exsists about Oscar.
Henke Pistorius.
Hi there
I am an exercise scientist based in Cape Town and I’ve been following with great interest the whole debate around Pistorius. I have a personal involvement, having been asked by his team to actually state that the limbs do not confer an advantage. Unfortunatley, I could not say this because I don’t believe it to be true – I think that the legs do work, and I believe I have some very sound reasons for suggesting this. Now Oscar and his agents, coaches and family are claiming that they do not aid his performance, but where is the proof for this? No research has ever been done, despite my calls, and the calls of other scientists to have it done. Not that I blame Pistorius for not wanting the research to be done – there is just too much to lose if it is shown that they improve performance. But all I ask is that people consider the possibilities. It’s a very difficult situation, because the emotional response is to say “Let him run!”. But I feel very strongly about this, because I really do think that there are overwhelming physiological arguments for the possibility that these legs do improve performance. And unfortunately, the approach taken by the IAAF will not establish this.
So what I would like to ask is that we consider all these options. Let’s stop claiming that the legs improve performance or denying that they do, and let’s find the research that proves it either way. But do the reasearch properly. I have a blog on which I have put all these issues, and will soon publish a letter to the IAAF which calls on them to do the work properly, because my instinct and scientific training tell me that we are headed for a potential disaster here.
Kind regards
Dr Ross Tucker
Cape Town, South Africa
One other thing I would like to add. The claim that Pistorius makes about the fact that other athletes have the same prostheses as him is probably not entirely valid. You need to consider the following factors which HAVE TO COME TOGETHER to create an athlete on prosthetic limbs:
1. The athelte must lose the limbs and hence be on the prosthetic limbs almost from birth. If one were to lose a limb in an accident for example, having already learned to walk, it would be very close to impossible to relearn the motor patterns required in order to sprint. So the question is how many athletes are there who have been on prosthetic limbs since they learned how to walk?
2. In this group of athletes, you then need to have enough money to afford the limbs. So that means probably 50% of the world’s amputees are excluded because they cannot afford to buy the equipment necessary.
3. Finally, the person has to invest substantially in physical therapy from a young age, which I am led to believe that Pistorius did. But most would not, and the end result is that there are probably only a few people in the world with the opportunity to run.
Now, this alone makes Pistorius remarkable. And I’m certainly not disputing this. I think it is incredible what he has achieved, and he deserves the attention he is receiving now. But I do not think that it should extend into running against able-bodied athletes, because whether we like it or not, the limbs may confer an advantage and we need a NEUTRAL source to analyse them. That means Pistorius or the IAAF should not be the drivers of this process.
Ross
I will not complement Tucker with a full reply, not now, maybe later when I have time.
No one from Oscar’s side have ever contacted or know Tucker, or have heard of him! Tucker claim “personal involvement!”
Later I will have to clear up a number of misguided assumptions made by Tucker –
Henke Pistorius.
My untrained eye suggests that Oscar having been like he is for over 19 years has control over the cheetahs not the cheetahs have control over his performance. I would assume that Oscar is far more able to put the input into them that they look to have any advantages for Oscar. I think then they should make sure they are very certain that its the legs and not Oscar before they pass any sort of judgement about advantages. What I see with my untrained eye is a very brave young man overcoming adversity and using the cheetahs to his advantage not the cheetahs use him. I think it is rubbish to say that they give him an advantage. I think the advantage is the time he has been differently abled that has made it look like an advantage when it is not. Because in actual fact Oscar is very abled to do what we can do. And good luck to him he deserves all the good things that come to him. he has the talent.
I do hope Sheffield is dried out by the time Oscar comes to run there!!
Dear Henke
Thank you for your reply. I must just re-iterate that I was in fact contacted, though this is not the thrust of my points. But to clear up the confusion, I was emailed for the first time in 2005 by a man claiming to be Oscar Pistorius’ manager. This is not Peet van Zyl, who I know is managing Oscar now. I then had email correspondence with this man for a period of about one month, a period that included a few phone conversations and emails with a representative from Finland who works for Ossur. If either of these people, whose names unfortunately escape me, was not representing Oscar Pistorius, then I apologise for the presumption. However, as I have pointed out, this is not material to the argument, it makes little differenc whether I have or have not had direct contact. I do not claim to have special insight because of this – my insight and opinion are based on scientific training, theories and coaching experience.
And what I am emphasizing is that research is required, and this research must be done properly in a controlled fashion. I make no assumptions without also acknowledging the counter-view, as you will see from the various articles I have written on the subject. This is the very reason we need to do the research. However, there is a very clear perverse incentive to prove that the legs do not work – the reaction of most people is clear evidence for this, because people cannot possibly conceive that the legs might provide an advantage.
However, my point is that they MIGHT – not that they do, and so becoming aggressive in response is not required. I cannot commit to either view point, as a scientist and athletic coach, until the evidence allows it.
So the problem is that there are seemingly two separate opinions – claims made by the Pistorius group that the legs are passive, that oscar has less blood etc. are all possibly true, but you are failing to acknowledge the possibility that there might exist an alternative or counter-argument. The research will establish this, but until then, it is my earnest opinion to be more circumspect with ‘facts’ – let science work out what the ‘facts’ are, evaluating the arguments of both sides.
This is, in effect, the same message that Caron Gilbert is sending – “make certain”, either way. But at the moment, the message that is being heavily emphasized is that the legs are passive. Yet this is being done without any evidence – it is your opinion. Mine is that they MIGHT not be 100% passive, and there is substantial evidence that this is the case. Now that first needs to be addressed, without becoming personal, and then we can move forward. But what I am doing is just pointing out what the issues are – these issues have not been directly addressed. Instead, a personal attack and denial were initiated, and the theories completely ignored. I do apologize if my tone caused offence – this was not my intention. My intention is to point out that there is a possibility, which has yet to be examined, that the legs may confer an advantage.
Kind regards
Ross Tucker
May I just use my untrained eye again to say that I don’t think Oscar gets any advantage from the cheetahs he has to work harder than a single amputee to get going and once he does its like magic to watch him run. His upper legs work faster than anybody’s and it looks like a mixture of power and grace and balance together with a lot of courage when he runs and this generates also alot of admiration especially from me for the fact that he is good at what he does and loves allsorts of sport. I imagine that on his normal legs you cannot tell he has them. Good luck Oscar and have the run of your life in Sheffield and don’t listen to any critisium about what you are doing.
What I am trying to say is let Oscar run and let him make history. He is an incredible young man. The word is determination and it will be used whether it be 2008 or 2012 by Oscar to get to run in the Olympic Games. Make it sooner rather than later. I have been inspired by Oscar myself. My rather weighty weight problem has been made less due to reading about how positive he is. I have lost 14 and a half kilos in 9 nearly 10 weeks and weight was my disability I am overcoming it(I have a lot more to loose). I would like to thank Oscar for being the person that he is for helping me with positive thinking.
Dear Caron
Here’s what you need to do. Next time you go for a run (assuming you run), I want you to get some of those weights that you can wear around your ankles, maybe 2kg each, and run with them. I guarantee you that by the time you reach the corner, your legs will be tired. Why? Because you are carrying extra weight in your lower legs and your muscles around your hips will have to pick that weight up every single stride. Now consider Oscar – his lower leg weighs probably 1 kg. Yours weighs maybe 10 kg. Imagine you run with 9kg extra around your legs. That’s the difference.
You need to take the emotion and sympathy right out of this – I agree that Oscar has courage, I agree that he is an inspiration. But an Olympic athlete – no way. There are loads of physiological arguments, and it seems as though you (and Oscar) have not even bothered to look into them. Instead, you are all about the emotion and ‘feeling’ and you speak from a completely uneducated view, which you at least acknowledge. This is not an issue about whether he has courage and determination, it’s an issue of science, and I agree 100% with Ross, this is wrong.
Cheers
I am overweight so I can not run at the moment nor could I ever run so to me what ever and however oscar is running is worth admiration from me. What he is doing will be one in the eye for anybody who just likes to curl up and not do a thing. He has given me the inspiration to loose weight so I thank him for that. He is a brave young man and what he is doing is expectant of him in some circles. So applaud him don’t beat him down because he is doing what he thinks is right give him encouragement to do it he needs it.
And Oh I forgot Oscar is the one doing it so shouldn’t Oscar know. Yes I’m untrained in such matters but I can see a brave young man when I see one and what he is trying to do.
Oscar is racing this weekend in the Norwich Union Grand Prix 400m (Press Release)