Overcoming disability in sport
Sportsworld takes a special look at disabled athletes competing for gold.
 |
| Natalie Du Toit is the first amputee to ever qualify for the Olympics |
She is the first amputee ever to qualify for the Olympics, and one of the most successful disabled swimmers in history.
Natalie Du Toit competed as an able-bodied athlete at the 1998 Commonwealth Games, before losing her leg in a motorcycle accident.
The 24-year-old South African kept on swimming and won five Paralympics gold medals, but this year she fulfilled her dream – qualifying for the Beijing games, and giving herself the chance to compete with able-bodied athletes once more.
Sportsworld’s Dan Williams reports.
Oscar
 |
| Oscar Pistorius will try to qualify for this summer’s Olympics with his prosthetic legs |
It has been quite a year for another South African Paralympian.
Oscar Pistorius – dubbed the ‘blade runner’ because of his carbon fiber prosthetic legs – has been given the go-ahead to race against able-bodied athletes and try to qualify for this summer’s Beijing Olympics.
The court of arbitration for sport’s decisions overturned a ban imposed on the South African by the governing body of world athletics, the IAAF.
And as Louise Potter reports, it is a decision that could set a remarkable precedent.
Paralympics
Athletes with disabilities and those with special needs often do not get as much credit as their able-bodied counterparts when it comes to sport.
Yet the Paralympics and the Special Olympics are aiming to change all of that.
This summer’s Paralympics games will be the biggest ever, featuring 20 sports and around 4,000 athletes, but as Farrah Esmail reports, a lot still has to be done to change public opinion about disabilities in sports.
Amputee ambitions
 |
| Football for Peace is uniting former warring factions in Liberia through amputee football |
It is not surprising that football has been low on the list of priorities in Liberia.
The West African country has recently endured 14 years of civil war.
But now, the Football for Peace project has been making its contribution towards uniting former warring factions, and they are doing it through amputee football.
The Michael Jordan of wheelchair basketball
 |
| For 16 years, Troy Sachs has been a key player in the Australian wheelchair basketball team |
Troy Sachs is hardly a household name in international sports, but he will be one of the most experienced athletes at the Beijing Games.
He is a world record holder, a gold medalist and has even been compared to Michael Jordan.
For the last 16 years, Sachs has been a key player in the Australian wheelchair basketball team, which will this summer compete for their second Paralympics gold medal.
Sportsworld’s Wayne Hay reports.
Watch part one of this episode of Sportsworld
Watch part two of this episode of Sportsworld
This episode of Sportsworld aired on Monday, May 26, 2008
To contact us click on ‘Send your feedback’ at the top of the page