Back Porch International Track And Field

Usain Bolt is the fastest man in the world at 100 meters and the fastest man in the world at 200 meters, so it's not like anyone doubted that he's also the fastest man in the world at 150 meters. But just to prove the obvious, Bolt ran in a 150-meter race over the weekend, and he ran the fastest time ever recorded.

According to the Lagos Vanguard, the Nigerian athletes participating at the All-Africa games arrived in the host city of Algiers, Algeria without proper equipment or uniforms for the games, prompting one sprinter to shun his country's flag entirely during the medal ceremony.

From the Vanguard, via All Africa.com:

Nigerian athletes did not have kits. They appeared in their different colours, not uniformed. Even during medal presentations, the Nigerian winners would only be known when the announcers identify them. They had no Nigerian Track Suits for such colourful events. Big Shame.

An athlete without a track suit simply cannot win! Or at least, they cannot look cool pulling off the ripoff pants prior to competition. (Note to self: We need to start using that phrase more: Big Shame.) The Nigerian National Sports Commission has been the target of--shocking!---allegations of theft and fraud for years in the nation, as Nigeria is the most populous and one of the wealthiest nations in Africa yet struggles to field consistently competitive teams or contingents in any major international sport.

Nigeria's not alone, however, in their administrative bungling. The All-Africa games as a whole may fall under new management in the form of the African Olympic Committee, who would be taking over from the ham-handed mismanagement of the African Union's sporting division. (And we all know how transparent and honest Olympic committees are. ) Nevertheless, it may be trading horrible management for merely bad, which would be a marked improvement.

The Debriefing is a column that runs every weekday at 9:00 a.m. here on FanHouse. It goes deep into one issue and then bounces around to a plethora of smaller ones ... and does it all in a way that will make you feel like the prettiest girl at the cotillion. Bookmark this page, and visit daily.



I don't normally pay a lot of attention to the Norwich Union Grand Prix. I haven't followed the event closely since Lars Axegolf was disqualified in 1978 for stuffing two shot-puts down the front of his shorts and telling people he had elephantitis and deserved a head-start in the 400 meter sprint. I could never get over the scandal.

But the issue of disability in sports has again come to the forefront in the Norwich Union Grand Prix. A South-African sprinter, a man by the name of Oscar Pistorius, has gotten permission to run the 400m. Track and field really isn't my thing, so normally, I wouldn't have taken notice ... but Oscar Pistorius doesn't really have legs. That makes his presence in a sprint somewhat unique, yes?

(Also at the bottom: We're going to be seeing a lot of Dane Cook, Eric Brynes' bulldog couldn't get away in time, and South Koreans really suck at football.)

South African Oscar Pistorius is the best runner in the world...who happens to not have legs.

Pistorius was born without legs below the knee, and runs with the assistance of bladed prostheses called "Cheetahs." He's engaged in a campaign to compete in the Olympics, which the International Amateur Athletic Federation has already banned him from once citing the potential for an unfair advantage from his artificial limbs. (The IAAF has reversed that decision, pending tests to see if Pistorius has any advantage at all due to the "Cheetahs.")

The latest episode in his fascinating story: Pistorius will compete in the Norwich Sheffield Grand Prix on July 15th. It is the first race for Pistorius after the IAAF green-lighted his racing against the regular field of sprinters, and he is particularly excited about facing off against Jeremy Wariner, who is best remembered as the "Holy Crap What Is A White Guy Doing Winning A Sprint Event" guy from the Sydney games.

"With the likes of Jeremy Wariner in the field I couldn't ask for a stronger test, but these are the sort of challenges I want," said Pistorius, 20.

Pistorius isn't tilting at windmills here--having set the world records for paralympic athletes in the 100, 200, and 400m distances, he competed last month in the South African national championships and placed second in a field of fully-able athletes. There's nowhere else left for him to compete.