A blog for my students and all English learners.

It deals with various everyday issues, news, curiosities

and things that arouse my interest every day.

niedziela, 23 października 2011

Oscar Pistorius - "the fastest man on no legs"

Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius is a South African sprint runner. "The fastest man on no legs", as he is often called, underwent a double amputation. Pistorius runs with the aid of artificial limbs. In 2007 Pistorius took part in his first international competitions for able-bodied athletes. However, his artificial lower legs became the reason for vivid discussion about whether “the blade runner” had unfair advantage over able-bodied runners. Having monitored his track performances and carried out tests, scientists came to the conclusion that Pistorius enjoyed considerable advantages over athletes without prosthetic limbs. On the strength of these findings, the International Association of Athletics Federations  decided that Pistorius was ineligible for competitions. This decision was reversed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which stated that there was no evidence that Pistorius had any advantage over able-bodied sportsmen.

The case of Oscar Pistorius started a heated discussion about whether disabled sportsmen, supported by technical devices, should compete with able-bodied athletes. Time will tell how this question will be resolved. One thing is sure – Oscar Pistorius can be an example to all disabled people who don’t believe that they can become successful, realize their ambitions and make their dreams come true. “I don’t see myself as disabled” – says Oscar Pistorius, the world record holder in the 100200 and 400 metres events.


The photos come from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Pistoriushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Oscar_Pistorius_Daegu_2011.jpg GNU License, author - Erik van Leeuwen, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Oscar_Pistorius-2.jpg Creative Commons, author - Coda.coza, original photograph by Elvar Palsson

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