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--- In Supertraining@
<pushprogress@
>
> Here's a press release from the International Paralympic Committee
(IPC) regarding the
> recent report from the IAAF:
>
******
The below was recently published on the IAAF website:
Oscar Pistorius - Independent Scientific study concludes that cheetah
prosthetics offer clear mechanical advantages
Monday 14 January 2008
Monte Carlo - The IAAF has received the results of an independent
scientific study carried out by Professor Peter Brüggemann at the
German Sport University in Cologne. This study made a biomechanical
and physiological analysis of long sprint running by a double
transtibial amputee athlete Oscar Pistorius (RSA) using "cheetah"
prosthetics, and also compared this athlete with five able-bodied
athletes who are capable of similar levels of performance at 400m.
The tests, which took place on Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 November in
the Institute of Biomechanics and Orthopaedics, were initiated by the
IAAF with the approval and participation of Oscar in order to see
whether the prosthetics used by him should be considered as technical
aids which give him an advantage over other athletes not using them,
in contravention of IAAF competition rule 144.2.*
The objective results of this study are that:
- Pistorius was able to run with his prosthetic blades at the same
speed as the able-bodied sprinters with about 25% less energy
expenditure. As soon as a given speed is reached, running with the
prosthetics needs less additional energy than running with natural
limbs.
- Once the physiological potential of Oscar Pistorius and the able-
bodied control athletes had been estimated, using three different
methods, it is clear that Pistorius' potential was not higher than
that of the controls, even though their performance results were
similar.
- The biomechanical analysis demonstrated major differences in the
sprint mechanics used by a below-knee amputee using prosthetics when
compared to athletes with natural legs. The maximum vertical ground
reaction forces and the vertical impulses are different in a highly
significant way and the amount of energy return of the prosthetic
blade have never been reported for a human muscle driven ankle joint
in sprint running.
- The positive work, or returned energy, from the prosthetic blade is
close to three times higher than with the human ankle joint in
maximum sprinting.
- The energy loss in the prosthetic blade was measured at 9.3% during
the stance phase while the average energy loss in the ankle joint of
the able bodied control athletes was measured at 41.4%. This means
that the mechanical advantage of the blade in relation to the healthy
ankle joint of an able bodied athlete is higher than 30%.
It is evident that an athlete using the Cheetah prosthetic is able to
run at the same speed as able bodied athletes with lower energy
consumption. Running with prosthetic blades leads to less vertical
motion combined with less mechanical work for lifting the body. As
well as this, the energy loss in the blade is significantly lower
than in the human ankle joints in sprinting at maximum speed. An
athlete using this prosthetic blade has a demonstrable mechanical
advantage (more than 30%) when compared to someone not using the
blade.
IAAF Council has been able to review the full report and has decided
that the prosthetic blades known as "cheetahs" should be considered
as technical aids in clear contravention of IAAF Rule 144.2. As a
result, Oscar Pistorius is not eligible to compete in competitions
organised under IAAF Rules.
Note for editors concerning test procedures and parameters:
- Analysis was carried out by a team of more than 10 scientists,
including staff from the physiology laboratory of Professor J. Mester
(Institute of Training Science and Sport Informatics)
- 12 high speed cameras (250 frames per second) were used to record
3D kinematics, with another 4 highspeed cameras to observe sagittal
plane motion
- Force platforms were used to record ground reaction forces and
point of force application
- Athletes ran the 400m test with a K4 mask to record max VO2. VO2
testing was also carried out in the laboratory (Wingate and Ramp
Test) on static bicycles. Blood lactate records were taken regularly
- A 3D scanner was used to record body mass and anthropometric
measures of all the control athletes
- The prosthetics were also subjected to material testing
* IAAF Rule 144.2 extract
Relates to the use of" technical aids" during competition
============
Jamie Carruthers
Wakefield, UK
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