June 01, 2007	Friday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 15, 1428

MONTE CARLO (Monaco), May 31: The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) proposed a rule on Thursday that would make it impossible for a South African amputee sprinter to compete at the Beijing Olympics.

Oscar Pistorius wants to run in Beijing despite having both legs amputated below the knee. With high-technology replacement blades attached just under his knees, he has set competitive times at the national level in the 400, 200 and 100 metres.

But the IAAF officials consider the blades an artificial aid, and its executive council proposed a new rule which would outlaw them.

The proposed rule would prohibit “use of any technical device that incorporates springs, wheels or any other element that provides the user with an advantage over another athlete not using such a device.”

The rule was originally meant to ban sophisticated gadgets that manufacturers add in the shoes of top athletes to make them run faster. But it would also cover the prostheses used by Pistorius.—AP