Oscar Pistorius insists he gains no advantage from prosthetic 'Cheetah' blades
Oscar Pistorius insists he gains no advantage from prosthetic 'Cheetah' bladesOscar Pistorius insists the "integrity of the sport" comes first after his upcoming appearance at the World Championships in Daegu reignited the debate over whether his prosthetic 'Cheetah' blades give him an unfair advantage.
Oscar Pistorius of South Africa during a training session ahead of the
World Championships in South Korea. Pic/AFPDouble amputee Pistorius will make history in Daegu when he becomes the first such athlete to compete in the event, with the first round of the 400 metres on Sunday morning. The 'Blade Runner' was barred from competing in IAAF competitions in January 2008 when the sport's world governing body amended its rules to ban the use of "any technical device that incorporates springs, wheels or any other element that provides a user with an advantage over another athlete not using such a device".
However, the decision was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, making Pistorius eligible for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He was unable to qualify for the South African team, winning gold medals instead in the Paralympic 100, 200 and 400 metres.
The 24-year-old admits he does become too emotional about the "ill-informed" comments about his situation, but insists the improvements which saw him take almost half a second off his personal best to qualify for Daegu are nothing to do with technology. "There have been a couple of people that have been ill-informed commenting about it," Pistorius told a packed press conference here yesterday.
"I have been through a lot of testing -- although the CAS case did not cover a lot of it -- but industry experts agree there is no advantage from the legs."People always have opinions but my job is not to always have to answer these questions. I have had to go through a lot of tests to prove that I don't have an advantage. I really do believe in the purity of sport so it was important for me to make sure I don't have an advantage. The integrity of the sport comes first and foremost.
"Any improvements I can make are from my own efforts. The legs have not changed since I got them in 2004. They are in mass production and no other Paralympic athletes are running these times. We are not allowed to change the legs in the agreement we have with the IAAF."
Asked if his achievement had been "tainted" by the debate, Pistorius added: "You could see it that way, but when you see how much positivity there is, the negative is five or 10 per cent. I do sometimes get too emotional at times and let it cloud the 90 per cent, but I've become more calm over this because I have done a lot of testing.
"My coach knows how much work I have put in. It's not just a career for me -- it's a lifestyle. I can honestly say any gains are not from technology. "My job is to perform on the track and I am more than grateful to be here. I deserve my place on this team."
