(Newser)
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Oscar Pistorius, one of the most acclaimed Paralympic athletes of all time, suffered a stunning defeat yesterday in the T43/44 200 meters, his first-ever loss in that distance at the Paralympics, reports the Telegraph. Brazil’s Alan Oliveira won with a time of 21.45 seconds, earning accusations from Pistorius (who finished in 21.52) that his prosthetic limbs were too long, and thus violated the International Paralympic Committee's regulations. “We’re not racing a fair race here," Pistorius said right after the race. "The regulations say that you can make yourself unbelievably high."
Pistorius said the evidence is in the video, as Oliveira was shorter than him at racing events last year, but now is taller. "Not taking away from Alan's performance—he's a great athlete—but these guys are a lot taller and you can't compete (with the) stride length," said Pistorius. However, the IPC said Oliveira's prosthetics were completely legal, according to the AP. "All athletes were measured today prior to competition by a classifier and all were approved for competition," said the IPC in a statement. Pistorius has since apologized, kind of, via a statement reported by the BBC: "That was Alan's moment and I would like to put on record the respect I have for him. I want to apologize for the timing of my comments but I do believe there is an issue here."
