With the Beijing Olympics now just weeks away, there is an increasing focus on the individuals who will be competing in the games. An increasing amount of attention is being placed on the use of devices that enhance the performance of some athletes—primarily computer-designed swimsuits and prosthetic legs for runners. Both of these instances have led to competitive records that have seen significant improvements over the past several months.
A recent study by researchers at the Univ. of Cologne revealed that the two prosthetic legs used by South African sprinter Oscar Pistorius require 25% less energy by Pistorius than would be used by naturally legged athletes. Regardless of this data, the Court of Arbitration for Sport overruled a ban by the International Association of Athletics Federations and will allow Pistorius to compete in the Olympic games.
The ruling committees have a difficult chore in making these decisions.
Any type of drug enhancement is illegal, but vision enhancements (contacts and glasses) are legal. But what about the new rapid replacement of electrolytes being touted by sports drink manufacturers? Are these chemically enhanced drinks illegal to use during a race or other long athletic competition? Prosthetics and computer-designed swimsuits are legal, but electronic shock muscle stimulants are illegal. In other sporting events, automotive racing, baseball, and golf, there is considerable effort and monitoring to ensure that the equipment used in these sports (cars, balls, bats, clubs, etc.) is within tight tolerances to maintain the competitive nature of the individual participants rather than biased by the equipment they use. Even with these specs, a slight shift within their normal tolerances can result in a noticeable shift in player performance. A small shift in baseball size, for example, can result in noticeable increases or decreases in the total number of home runs hit every year.
Pistorius has a very different running style than normal runners, and he takes a lot more relative time to get up to speed than his competitors. But once up to speed, those spring-based prosthetics that replace conventional muscles appear to give him a definite advantage. He also has been running competitively for only the past four years—his double amputations were the result of a birth defect.
Pistorius is a role model for what can be accomplished with a handicap. And with the large number of amputees coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan, there is a glaring need for these role models and the technologies they employ to provide the psychological support for those just starting to work through their disabilities.
