This astonishing news comes from The Science of Sport blog, one of my go-to sources for scientifically sound sports analysis. The news has nothing to do with swimming, but has dramatic implications for the eligibility of disabled athletes and the regulation of prosthetic technology in sport. As the headline of The Science of Sport post states: 10 seconds over 400m (is) the magnitude of Oscar Pistorius’ advantage in a 400m race.

A 10 second advantage in a 400m sprint?? If these results weren’t shocking enough, the source of the conclusion also came as a surprise. The lead scientists on Pistorius’ appeals study were the ones to give statements refuting the findings that were originally going to allow his competition against able-bodied athletes.

As stated in the Science of Sport post, the author quoted in a recent press release “was part of a team who Pistorius contacted to help build the case that he did NOT receive an advantage thanks to the high-tech carbon fibre blades.”

For the full story, read the insight and analysis as provided by Ross Tucker, Ph.D.

One thing I took away from this story that does have some bearing on the swimming world is that given enough time, science will ultimately come to a thorough and supported conclusion. This full reversal is not a sign that scientific testing of new technologies leads to erroneous results – but that adequate time is needed to analyze the results of testing new technologies.