Oscar Pistorius Essay Example

Oscar Pistorius: The Legend “You’re not disabled by the disabilities you have, you are able by the abilities you have.” A quotation said by the famous Oscar Pistorius. This past summer Oscar Pistorius was a runner in the Olympics competing in the able bodied races. Oscar was born in South Africa on November 22, 1986 with a serious disease called Fibular Hemimelia, which is a congenital absence of the fibula. This disease caused his parents to make the tough decision to amputate both of his legs. Oscar was eleven months old when his legs were amputated. Shortly after the surgery he was fitted with prosthetic legs. Before long, Oscar mastered the use of his prosthetics. At age eleven Oscar started playing rugby, water polo, and tennis. After a knee injury in 2004, he began rehabilitation. During rehab he began running and fell in love with it. According to his coaches Oscar was a natural from the beginning. For the first years of his running career, Oscar competed in the Paralympics. He was faster than all the competitors, so Oscar set his sights on the Olympics. Oscar began running able bodied races and immediately became a fierce competitor. Oscar’s goal of running in the Olympics was threatened in 2007. At this time there was a dispute about Oscar’s prosthetic legs. There were claims that his prosthetics gave him an advantage. This banned Oscar from competitively running able bodied races. In order to prove the critics wrong Oscar went through a series of tests. On May 16, 2008 IAAF law which kept Oscar from running was reversed. Oscar “the blade runner” set his sights on the Olympics once again. Oscar finally qualified in the Olympic trials and was given a spot on the 2012 South African Olympic team. He set his personal record of 45.07 seconds for the 400 meter race. Although he left the Olympics without a medal, he is still a winner. All of Oscar’s accomplishments make him a champion. Oscar is an inspiration to not only the disabled but also the