Cait & Marty are on opposite sides of the controversy involving Oscar Pistorius, the double-amputee sprinter from South Africa who runs on “Cheetahs” - state-of-the-art carbon fiber prosthetics.
Pistorius has dreamed since childhood of qualifying for the Olympics. The International Association of Athletics Federations has been against it, saying Pistorius’ Cheetahs give him an edge over over athletes.
Marty supports the IAAF policy. Cait opposes it. Here are their arguments:
“Marty, you ignorant slut. Let him run. Pistorius’ legs, such as they are, still have to pump those Cheetahs and there is no certainty he would win - or even qualify - for the Summer Games.
I would watch that race for sure. So would the rest of the world. Think of the ratings as tens of millions of people tuned in to Robo-Gimp vs. the Olympians - a Sci-Fi movie come to life. So cowboy it up IAAF and let him race.”
“Cait, YOU ignorant slut. You, and too many others, are thinking with your hearts on this one.
Pistorius’ ‘legs’ are not human - they are machines, and Olympic competition was designed to test the human body unaided by performance devices. Runners with ‘real’ legs also face cramps, muscle spasms and other lower leg injuries from which Pistorius’ Cheetahs are immune.
For another viewpoint, look to the Greeks and Romans who developed the Olympics. The first written code of Roman law in 449 B.C. ruled: ‘Cito necatus insignis ad deformitatem puer esto’ - which very loosely translated means ‘Gimpy people shall not compete on carbon fiber prosthetics.’ ”
Eds Note: The literal translation of ‘Cito necatus insignis ad deformitatem puer esto’ should raise the small hairs on the back of your neck. Google it.
January 30th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Any guy with a shred of male intuition knows that jumping in the middle of two girls calling each other sluts is absolute suicide; against my better judgement and not for the first time, here goes!
I am afraid that both Marty and Cait have missed the underlying theme and fundamental cause of the Oscar Pistorius debate. The question being asked by media and amateur sports fans around the world is: Should a man whose legs are enhanced by technology (albeit not by choice) be allowed to compete in the Olympic Games? Cait argues that yes he in fact should – it would create enormous ratings. She suggests that more spectators would tune in to watch a bionic man, than to see average Olympians. Marty invokes the irony of the situation, saying that the Olympic Games are the pinnacle of natural human perfection and tradition. They should therefore account to ancient Roman civil code. (Luckily the modern Olympics originated in Greece!)
Here is the real question we should be asking: Why does Mr. Pistorius even want to compete in the Olympic Games? Some of you may have heard these games being referred to as the “regular” Olympics.
One could assume that being the world record holder in the double amputee 100m, 200m and 400m events, “Blade Runner,” as he is called, could happily live a life of training hard, making media appearances and bedding supermodels.
So why does he want to run in the Olympics? Because he is a competitor.
At the 2004 Athens Paralympic Summer Games, he captured a gold medal in the 200m and a bronze in the 100m events. In Manchester at the World Cup the next year, he followed suit winning gold in both 100m and 200m events. If they made him race with all that hardware around his neck, maybe it would cancel out the advantages of his “Cheetahs.”
Mr. Pistorius has achieved the pinnacle of international competition. He has destroyed the best runners on one and no legs respectively and earned international glory. So why is it that we have only heard about him recently, when his name is associated with the “normal” Olympics?
“The fastest man on no legs” setting the goal of beating two-legged Olympians is like an Olympic runner setting the goal of winning the Kentucky Derby – on foot. Amazing if either one could be pulled off, but the respective unnecessity is self-evident. The problem is that Olympic sprint champions receive the adoration of the planet after striking gold. A Paralympic champion can expect the glory of explaining the Paralympics to everyone he shows his medal too. Wow, they have games for you guys too?!
They sure do, and they are probably the most thrilling thing you have never seen. Media attention of the Paralympic Games is dismal. Paralympic athletes representing their countries at the highest level can expect a two to three minute blurb on a one-hour per day coverage window at 3am during the games. Compare that to the 24 hour coverage during the Olympics. Media outlets cite a lack of interest in Paralympic sport as their reason for non-broadcasting, as well as a lack of sponsorship. If I was a head of marketing, I wouldn’t buy commercial slots at 3am, nor am I a big fan of programming broadcasted at that hour – like “How to Get Rock Hard Abs in 15 Minutes.”
Like Blade Runner, I know that rock hard abs take hours of effort and months of sacrifice. He can’t be blamed for wanting to compete against athletes with a higher functional ability than himself. He is an athlete and that’s what we do. We try and beat people – if it is against all odds, then even better. Mr. Pistorius shouldn’t be forced to do so, in order to get the glory he deserves.
If we have learned anything from this debacle, it is that media, and people around the world find disabled sport to be fascinating, exciting, dramatic and highly controversial. Let us capitalize on the momentum and turn it into revenue dollars for media conglomerates – as well as much needed glory for the Paralympic movement.
Josh Vander Vies
Canadian National Boccia Player
Paralympian – Athens 2004