http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/more/07/16/bc.run.iaaf.amputeespri.ap/index.html
With technology moving at such an incredible rate there may be some problems for competitive sports on the horizons. It was always thought that someone with a disability would have a harder time competing against an able bodied competition. What if technology made it so you could run faster or jump higher with prosthetic legs? What if you had a prosthetic arm that could make you throw faster and harder? These questions have come up before. Tom Dempsey set the NFL record for longest field goal when he kicked a 63 yard field goal in 1970. Dempsey was born without toes on his right foot, and he had a shoe modified with a flattened front (think sledge hammer) which allowed him to kick the ball squarely. The NFL created a rule that all kickers shoes had to be the same so Dempsey would no longer have an advantage. Could the olympics pass a rule that says you must have your own legs or arms to compete? I think this is an interesting topic and would like to hear some opinions on what you think you should be done if anything to keep competition fair.
2 comments:
I think there are going to have to be games for full-bodied people and separate games for others, much like the Olympics / Paralympics distinction that already exists. It may be, as you said, that certain "disabled" folks might have an advantage rather than a disadvantage.
Thinking of the guy in the picture, those competition prosthetics may have springback tension such that he gets more power and less friction out of artificial lower legs than a person can get out of natural legs that weigh 10 times as much. While this guy has had to learn to run with these things, which is tough, he now may be technologically superior to a human body for certain specific purposes.
Even absent added technology, there are fairness questions. There have been several competitive wrestlers with no legs at the HS and college levels, including one HS wrestler in Wisconsin in my lifetime that at least competed for the State championship (can't remember if he won.)
You'd think it's a huge disadvantage until you realize that this kid is a hard-training athlete with the muscular upper body of a 200 lb. man, yet he only weighs 115 lbs. because of a lack of legs. He's wrestling guys with nothing even close to the same upper body strength and power. Plus, he's got an absurdly low center of gravity for a leverage advantage, and whatever percentage of wrestling holds involve hooking a leg are completely obsolete against him. Next thing you know, you're humiliating and he's up on the ottoman banging your girlfriend froggy style.
Still, where do you draw the line. Can I have a special class of competition because I'm chubby and get out of breath easily?
"Next thing you know, you're humiliating and he's up on the ottoman banging your girlfriend froggy style."
Funniest post in a long time TK.
I was actually listening to the radio when they were talking about this sprinter. The took HD cameras and where able to tell wind resistance in reference to drag, and they found the runner with the prosthetic was able to have a lot less wind resistence. He was also the only sprinter who actually was faster at the 400 meter mark than the 200 meter mark. I think this could be a problem. Please note that I dont want this to disrespect any disabled athlete competing with everyone else. The amount of time and effort the must exude to get even close to compete at the level is unbelievable. In fact some would say that should ovverride any type of advantage they have. However I can see say in the next 20 years where people can compete at higher level because they are not able bodied and have the help of modern day technology. It will be interesting to see if he gets the required time to qualify for the olympics. I bet they will not let him compete if he does.
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