It was reported in various media outlets today that Oscar Pistorius, an amputee runner from South Africa, won the right to be able to compete in the Beijing Olympics. Critics felt that Pistorius had somewhat of an “advantage” with his runner blades.
Hmm– let’s see– people thought that Pistorius had an advantage over other athletes and they wanted him not to be eligible to compete, but they still let athletes compete even if they test positive for performance enhancing drugs or do other things that can be classified as cheating? Very interesting.
This situation can cause several PR Nightmares for the IOC and other athletic organizations. The key messages that are coming across is the fact that they want the playing field to be fair and equal for everyone– and yet, these organizations change their tune when one athlete wants to compete but others feel that he may have an advantage. This is quite different from their stance with athletes that have tested positive for steroids or other performance enhancing drugs– they are branded as doing this, but they are still allowed to compete and have a huge advantage over the other athletes. Track and field has been slammed with this situation so many times– from Marion Jones to Justin Gatlin– these athletic organizations need to be consistent with their strategies and key messages among their target audiences.
Personally, I am happy that Pistorius will be able to try out for the South African Olympic team, and I wish him all the best. Competing at the Olympics is the highest honor for any athlete– you are representing your country and competing at the highest level. It doesn’t get any better then this! 🙂
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
Karen 🙂
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