What could Pistorius run for 800m?

that's a damn good question !

if his set-up is more efficient than normal-limbed humans, he likely woud be pretty damn good at 800 as he fatigues less than normal-limbeds

however, seeing as he sticks with 400 & doesn't run 800s, it's likely his 800 isn't in same class as his 400

ventolin wrote:

that's a damn good question !

if his set-up is more efficient than normal-limbed humans, he likely woud be pretty damn good at 800 as he fatigues less than normal-limbeds

however, seeing as he sticks with 400 & doesn't run 800s, it's likely his 800 isn't in same class as his 400

It could also be that his 800 is ridiculous enough that ever truly racing it would clearly expose his advantage. I'm not saying that this is definitely the case, but it's a possibility.

He seems like mostly a fast-twitch guy. However, if his fiber makeup is as good for 800 as for 400, I could easily picture him negative-splitting a sub-1:40--something like 51/48+.

Of course, not having an individual lane to run in would make it dangerous for him and his competitors. Plus he'd be DFL after the first 200 and would hav to make up a lot of ground by running wide.

That 600 is a more interesting question. That could be run in lanes all the way. I have no doubt that he could run the best time ever in that, just by being in 46 shape for 400. No doubt.

What do you think he loses from not being able to start from blocks?

Alan

present wrote:

He seems like mostly a fast-twitch guy. However, if his fiber makeup is as good for 800 as for 400, I could easily picture him negative-splitting a sub-1:40--something like 51/48+.

Of course, not having an individual lane to run in would make it dangerous for him and his competitors. Plus he'd be DFL after the first 200 and would hav to make up a lot of ground by running wide.

That 600 is a more interesting question. That could be run in lanes all the way. I have no doubt that he could run the best time ever in that, just by being in 46 shape for 400. No doubt.

Maybe his strategy is to get acceptance from IOC for 400 then switch up to 800 where he can win his gold. I could see him running the first 500 DFL, then passing everyone in the last 300 while running in lane 4. If his endurance advantage is so big he wouldn't need to worry about a few extra meters.

interesting argument

however, if that was the case, he'd likely only ever have run the 200 ( or even 100 ) in about 23s, which wouda been no threat whatsoever to the able-bodied elite & the iaaf wouda probably just let him run in regular meets with no objection ( reading between the lines, his 46s is fringes of international class & clearly iaaf considered that quick enough to look into ) - once he'd run a few regular meets he wouda been established on the circuit & future iaaf objections wouda been almost impossible

i don't think his 800 is good, because if he wanted to run that in olympics, he'd have used some "back-door" plan like above to get established

i'd have to figure his best event is 400m & that's in 46s

he does start in blocks

If he ran an 800 though, he wouldn't.

dingle wrote:

This is only half joking. His advantage must increase for a while after the 400m. Could he set a world record in the 600m? Could he be really world class for the 800?

What am I missing? I thought the point of letting him run was that there was no advantage - so why would his 800 be any different from his 400?

the gooch wrote:

What am I missing? I thought the point of letting him run was that there was no advantage - so why would his 800 be any different from his 400?

This recent ruling notwithstanding, everyone else seems to be in agreement that he does acheive a significant advantage with the Cheetahs. Part of the evidence of this advantage is that he actually runs the second half of the 400m faster than the first half, which could point to a crazy-fast 600m or 800m.

Apparently most people here (myself included) believe that he does in fact have an advantage over able bodied athletes.

Also, note that the CAS didn't rule that he doesn't have an advantage, just that the IAAF failed to prove that he does have an advantage.

I don't pretend to know how to calculate the energy savings, but is it possible that there is no advantage, just an DISadvantage in the first 100m, therefore his negative splits? Everyone assumes that he has an advantage because he negative splits, but maybe not, maybe he's at a significant disadvantage in starting/accelerating.

i'd like to see his 100 - 200 m split vs. his 200-300 and 300-400 m splits, that way we aren't worried at all about his crappy start...

jungleroy59 wrote:

I don't pretend to know how to calculate the energy savings, but is it possible that there is no advantage, just an DISadvantage in the first 100m, therefore his negative splits? Everyone assumes that he has an advantage because he negative splits, but maybe not, maybe he's at a significant disadvantage in starting/accelerating.

without knowing his splits, i'd wager they'd have to be at least 1s different in order for people to emphasise the -ve nature of them

hence, if he's a 46s guy, then splits are 23.5 / 22.5

thus assuming 22.5s terminal split, compare that to able-bodied who at best run with a +ve split differential of 1s

hence, able-bodied guy with 2nd split of 22.5 woud be a 21.5 / 22.5 = 44.0

seeing as only 1 white boy in history has run 44-flat, i think the odds of oscar's 2nd 200m of 22.5 with the skis being the same as being able-bodied are close to 0 & thus they are significantly aiding him in 2nd half

I agree. If he is at a disadvantage from 0-175 (?) but he has a slight advantage over the second half; that would even things out. That is my rationale. I realize others may feel differently.

If you can watch this video and tell me this guy doesn't have an advantage in the last 100 you're crazy.

humidxc wrote:

I agree. If he is at a disadvantage from 0-175 (?) but he has a slight advantage over the second half; that would even things out. That is my rationale. I realize others may feel differently.

The chance of things evening out perfectly are pretty slim.

Dr. Fraunkensteen wrote:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=1so1ZMgpg2w

If you can watch this video and tell me this guy doesn't have an advantage in the last 100 you're crazy.

I was there, it was ridiculous!! The whole crowd went nuts for the guy.

I also got to see the only recorded long-jumper kebab in history.