Oscar Pistorius, a double-amputee sprinter, has appealed a decision that has barred him from competing to qualify for the Olympic Games, according to a NY Times story Feb. 14.
Pistorius appealed before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland on Wednesday. In January, the International Association of Athletics Federations, track and field’s governing body, "ruled that his carbon fiber prosthetic blades gave him an unfair advantage." According to a scientific study in November, Pistorius' prosthetics are "more efficient than a human ankle . . . can return energy in maximum speed sprinting and that Pistorius was able to keep pace with certain able-bodied sprinters while expending about 25 percent less energy."
“The tests that were performed, we believe, were completely flawed and inadequate,” said Jeffrey Kessler, Pistorius' lawyer.
From a media standpoint, I am glad to see the New York Times covering this important issue. And there is a precedent for athletes with prosthetics competing against able-bodied athletes. Aimee Mullins, who is now an actress and model (See my blog post about her from Feb. 8), was the first athlete with a disability to face off against able-bodied athletes in NCAA Division 1 track and field events, when she attended Georgetown University.
