Double Amputee Oscar Pistorius Can Run In The Olympics
DOUBLE-amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius has won his appeal Friday and can compete for a place in the Beijing Olympics.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the 21-year-old South African is eligible to race against able-bodied athletes, overturning a ban imposed by the International Association of Athletics Federations.
CAS said the unanimous ruling goes into effect immediately.
“I am ecstatic,” Pistorius told reporters in Milan, Italy. “When I found out, I cried. It is a battle that has been going on for far too long. It’s a great day for sport. I think this day is going to go down in history for the equality of disabled people.”
Pistorius should compete. And other athletes should go hard on him. Going easy on the South African would be a violation of the sporting ethos: to do your best.
Why not let him run?
And if he wins Olympic Gold? Well, the naysayers who bemoan his “advantage” will worry at the possibilty of other athletes chopping off their limps to win?
No bother. Let them. Athletes already deform their bodies – with drugs…
Posted: 16th, May 2008 | In: Back pages Comments (26) | TrackBack | Permalink
