OLD-SCHOOL WHEELING-OSCAR PISTORIUS COMPETES TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN PARALYMPIC AND OLYMPIC APORTS

I wrote this article for The Phoenix , published on June 22, 2007. Please read the update at the end.

Oscar Pistorius may be a household name soon. He calls himself the “fastest man on legs.” Oscar is a 20-year-old double amputee from South Africa. Recently, his story has been covered on the news and “Good Morning America.” It is a story of sheer determination and hard work.

 Oscar is a runner, and has shattered numerous records in the Paralympics. Now he has his sights set on an even bigger goal: competing in the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in China

. Not the Paralympics or Special Olympics, but THE Olympics.

 He certainly has the speed to qualify. Oscar uses Cheetah Flex Feet – special prosthetics built for running. But some people are saying that the special limbs may give Oscar an unfair advantage in his races.

 Oscar was born with bones missing in both of his legs, which resulted in both of his legs being amputated below the knee. Still, his disability turned into an ability, and running became a passion, sort of a symbol of his courage.

 “I never encountered anything that I couldn’t do, due to the fact that I have prosthetic legs,” he said.

 Oscar won a gold medal at the 2004 Paralympics in Athens, Greece. He has since won numerous gold medals in other events around the world, and has even competed against - and has beaten - able-bodied runners.

 He runs on the Cheetah legs, but uses other artificial limbs for walking and doing everyday type things.

 But despite all of his accomplishments, Oscar’s biggest obstacle isn’t the other runners he competes against.

 The International Association of Athletes Federations, the governing body of track and field events, claim that Oscar’s running legs may give him an unfair advantage in races by “making him taller” and “adding more bounce and spring” to his running. They are still investigating his case, but so far have ruled against him qualifying for the 2008 Olympics

. Cheetahs are carbon-fiber type limbs, which although built stronger than human legs, only give back thirty percent of energy that a human leg would.

 “I can’t see that a prosthetic can be seen as a(n) advantage, “Oscar claims. “It is such a weird concept to think about.”

 Oscar calls the preliminary ruling “pure discrimination against disabled people.” That is why he has taken his case public, and it has seemed to work. In a recent ABC News poll, over ninety percent of those polled feel Oscar should be allowed to compete in the Olympics

. Even his competitors and coaches support his position.

 “The guys that I ran against are very supportive and that’s been great,” he says. “They’re pretty happy I’m training hard to bridge the gap between Paralympics and Olympics sports.”

 So, we may be hearing the name of Oscar Pistorius more in the next few years to come. If given the chance, Oscar would like to compete in at least two Olympics.

 If given the chance.

Update: Pistorious is currently serving a six-year prison term for murder in South Africa for shooting his live-in girlfriend on Valentine's Day, 2013. Pistorious claimed it was a tragic accident, thinking an intruder had entered their apartment. He is one year into serving his time.