All those who qualify for the Olympics are heroes in most people’s eyes, but there are some who will go down in history for their performances – and not always because they are Usain Bolt. Oscar Pistorius from South Africa is one such man, who on Sunday August 5 2012 became the first amputee to compete in an Olympic track event. His eighth place in the semi-finals of the 400m was sadly not enough to take him through to the final, but he did come second in the heats earlier in the week and did himself proud. The four-time Paralympic medallist will return to London in a few weeks’ time for the 2012 Paralympics and is expected to be a major contender. According to ossur.com, Pistorius was born in 1986 without a fibula in either leg and, as a result, had both of his legs amputated below the knee when he was just a few months old. He has, however, never let that be an issue; having never known any different, he just got on with his life. Fond of rugby, water polo and tennis, he switched to the track when he seriously injured his knee playing rugby. Pistorius made his name in the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens when he walked away with a silver medal in the 100m and a gold in the 200m. His 200m time of 21.97 made him the first amputee to compute less than 22 seconds. He did even better in the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing when he took gold medals in 100m, 200m and 400m; his time in the 200m was 21.67. However, this was still not enough for Pistorius, who wanted to be recognised as an athlete in his own right, without the Paralympic label. That wasn’t an easy process, because the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) initially ruled that the specialist carbon-fibre running blades he wears gave him an unfair advantage. He fought the decision, taking it to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, and was eventually given the right to compete against able-bodied athletes. There are still those who consider Pistorius to have an unfair advantage because of his blades, but his competitors have shown him enormous respect. After the semi-finals, Kirani James, the Grenadian 400m runner, swapped race numbers with him and all the competitors went to hug him. Earlier in the week, James had said: “He is out here making history and we should all respect that and admire that. I just see him as another athlete, as another competitor but most importantly as a human being, another person. I have a lot of respect for the guy and for what he does.” Oscar Pistorius, nick-named ‘blade runner,’ is a model for anyone who thinks that going for gold is impossible. As Pistorius himself has said: “You are not disabled by your disabilities but abled by your abilities.” He has won a place in the hearts of all nations for his determination and bravery. Category:Home › Other • Pomegranates: A newly discovered superfood • Where did the joke why did the chicken cross the road come from and why is it funny? • Can mothers diagnosed with bipolar disorder make good parents? • Spiritual evolution of human consciousness • Tips for getting a college basketball scholarship • Living with Pseudotumor cerebri (PTC) • Caring for the caregiver • Technologys impact on society
