“Blade Runner” competes in Olympics today

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   left0ver1under

   August 4, 2012 at 10:57 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment

   In some sports forums, I’ve seen people ignorantly whining that Pistorius has “springs”. In reality, to be allowed to compete, he was forced to get carbon fibre prosthetics that have absolutely no give in them.

   He’s actually at a disadvantage compared to other runners because he can’t use the natural spring of the ankle, and he’s missing some of the muscle in his calves.

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   ema

   August 5, 2012 at 12:16 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment

   I don’t know. According to this, it looks like he actually has an advantage compared to the other runners:

   In 2000, Weyand and a team of researchers at Harvard published a study showing that humans, from couch potatoes to pro sprinters, have essentially the same leg-swing times when they achieve their maximum speed. Says Weyand, “The line we use around the lab is, From Usain Bolt to Grandma, they reposition their limbs in virtually the same amount of time.”

   But Pistorius’s leg-swing times, when measured on a high-speed treadmill, were off the human charts. At top speed, he swings his legs between strides in 0.284 of a second, which is 20 percent faster than intact-limbed sprinters with the same top speed. “His limbs are 20 percent lighter,” Weyand says, “and he swings them 20 percent faster.”

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   Forbidden Snowflake

   August 5, 2012 at 4:49 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment

   ema, that study is highly disputed.

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   StevoR

   August 5, 2012 at 6:42 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment

   Watch very closely, one of these Olympic athletes, Oscar Pistorius — nicknamed Blade Runner — is not like the others …

   I’m getting a “This video has been removed by the user” message.

   But I think I know the man you mean.

   Actually of course, they’re all individuals. Unless there’s a pair of identical twins competing here – no wait, even then each twin is a person individually their own by nurture and circumstance if not genetically.

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   Trebuchet

   August 5, 2012 at 9:42 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment

   He was second in his heat, last I heard. I’m not sure how I feel about this. One thing I did notice was that his lower legs, from the knee to the bottom of the spring-foot, looked signifcantly longer than normal. I’d think that has to be an advantage.

   @leftover1under: There certainly seemed to be some “give” in the blades when I was watching him get ready on TV last night.

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   Jordan Genso

   August 5, 2012 at 10:24 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment

   In my opinion, it’s irrelevant whether his prosthetics give him an advantage or set him at a disadvantage, I personally don’t think he should be allowed to compete. I have major respect for the guy and all he has accomplished, and I don’t fault him at all for wanting to compete, but the prosthetics are such a large variable that I don’t think it is any longer an “apples to apples” comparison of athletes.

   I usually dislike slippery slope arguments, but I think it can apply here, as allowing prosthetics that will play a pivotal role in the event opens a door I’d rather see remain closed.

   It’s obviously a subjective discussion though, so I wouldn’t say those who disagree with me are ‘wrong’. And if the people involved in the Olympics decided democratically to allow this athlete to compete, then I accept that. All I’m saying is that my vote would have been ‘no’.

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   Jordan Genso

   August 5, 2012 at 10:26 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment

   Although one analogy I came up with that would support allowing him to compete is the use of corrective lenses (glasses, contacts, etc) in the games. If those without perfect vision get to wear their glasses, then why can’t he wear his prosthetic legs.

   It’s a tough call.