Nike, Inc.

Type	Public
Traded as	NYSE: NKE S&P 500 Component
Industry	Apparels, accessories
Founded	1964 (as Blue Ribbon Sports)[1] 1978 (as Nike, Inc.)
Founder(s)	Bill Bowerman Phil Knight
Headquarters	Washington County, Oregon, United States (Near Beaverton, Oregon)
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Phil Knight (Chairman) Mark Parker (President and CEO)
Products	Athletic footwear and apparel, sport equipments and other athletic and recreational products
Revenue	US$ 20.862 billion (FY 2011)[2]
Operating income	US$ 2.844 billion (FY 2011)[2]
Net income	US$ 2.133 billion (FY 2011)[2]
Total assets	US$ 14.998 billion (FY 2011)[2]
Total equity	US$ 9.843 billion (FY 2011)[2]
Employees	38,000 (May 2011)[2]
Website	Nike.com

Nike, Inc. ( /ˈnaɪkiː/; NYSE: NKE) is a major publicly traded clothing, footwear, sportswear, and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, in the Portland metropolitan area. It is the world's leading supplier of athletic shoes and apparel^[3] and a major manufacturer of sports equipment, with revenue in excess of US$18.6 billion in its fiscal year 2008 (ending May 31, 2008). As of 2008, it employed more than 30,000 people worldwide. Nike and Precision Castparts are the only Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the state of Oregon, according to The Oregonian.

The company was founded on January 25, 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight,^[1] and officially became Nike, Inc. on May 30, 1978. The company takes its name from Nike (Greek Νίκη, pronounced [nǐːkɛː]), the Greek goddess of victory. Nike markets its products under its own brand, as well as Nike Golf, Nike Pro, Nike+, Air Jordan, Nike Skateboarding, and subsidiaries including Cole Haan, Hurley International, Umbro and Converse. Nike also owned Bauer Hockey (later renamed Nike Bauer) between 1995 and 2008.^[4] In addition to manufacturing sportswear and equipment, the company operates retail stores under the Niketown name. Nike sponsors many high profile athletes and sports teams around the world, with the highly recognized trademarks of "Just do it" and the Swoosh logo.

Origins and history[link]

Nike, originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS), was founded by University of Oregon track athlete Philip Knight and his coach Bill Bowerman in January 1964. The company initially operated as a distributor for Japanese shoe maker Onitsuka Tiger (now ASICS), making most sales at track meets out of Knight's automobile.^[5]

According to Otis Davis, a student athlete whom Bowerman coached at the University of Oregon, who later went one to win two gold medals at the 1960 Summer Olympics, Bowerman made the first pair of Nike shoes for him, contradicting a claim that they were made for Phil Knight. Says Davis, "I told Tom Brokaw that I was the first. I don't care what all the billionaires say. Bill Bowerman made the first pair of shoes for me. People don't believe me. In fact, I didn't like the way they felt on my feet. There was no support and they were too tight. But I saw Bowerman make them from the waffle iron, and they were mine."^[6]

The company's profits grew quickly, and, in 1967, BRS opened its first retail store, located on Pico Boulevard in Santa Monica, California. By 1971, the relationship between BRS and Onitsuka Tiger was nearing an end. BRS prepared to launch its own line of footwear, which would bear the Swoosh newly designed by Carolyn Davidson.^[7] The Swoosh was first used by Nike on June 18, 1971, and was registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on January 22, 1974.^[8]

The first shoe sold to the public to carry this design was a soccer shoe named Nike, which was released in the summer of 1971. In February 1972, BRS introduced its first line of Nike shoes, with the name derived from the Greek goddess of victory. In 1978, BRS, Inc. officially renamed itself to Nike, Inc. Beginning with Ilie Năstase, the first professional athlete to sign with BRS/Nike, the sponsorship of athletes became a key marketing tool for the rapidly growing company.

The company's first self-designed product was based on Bowerman's "waffle" design. After the University of Oregon resurfaced the track at Hayward Field, Bowerman began experimenting with different potential outsoles that would grip the new urethane track more effectively. His efforts were rewarded one Sunday morning when he poured liquid urethane into his wife's waffle iron. Bowerman developed and refined the so-called "waffle" sole, which would evolve into the now-iconic Waffle Trainer in 1974.

By 1980, Nike had attained a 50% market share in the U.S. athletic shoe market, and the company went public in December of that year.^[9] Its growth was due largely to "word-of-foot" advertising (to quote a Nike print ad from the late 1970s), rather than television ads. Nike's first national television commercials ran in October 1982, during the broadcast of the New York Marathon. The ads were created by Portland-based advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy, which had formed several months earlier in April.

Together, Nike and Wieden+Kennedy have created many print and television advertisements, and Wieden+Kennedy remains Nike's primary ad agency. It was agency co-founder Dan Wieden who coined the now-famous slogan "Just Do It" for a 1988 Nike ad campaign, which was chosen by Advertising Age as one of the top five ad slogans of the 20th century and enshrined in the Smithsonian Institution.^[9] Walt Stack was featured in Nike's first "Just Do It" advertisement, which debuted on July 1, 1988.^[10] Wieden credits the inspiration for the slogan to "Let’s do it", the last words spoken by Gary Gilmore before he was executed.^[11]

Throughout the 1980s, Nike expanded its product line to encompass many sports and regions throughout the world.^[12]

Acquisitions[link]

As of November 2008, Nike, Inc. owns four key subsidiaries: Cole Haan, Hurley International, Converse Inc. and Umbro. Nike's first acquisition was the upscale footwear company Cole Haan in 1988. In February 2002, Nike bought surf apparel company Hurley International from founder Bob Hurley.^[13] In July 2003, Nike paid US$309 million to acquire Converse Inc., makers of the iconic Chuck Taylor All Stars sneakers.^[14] On March 3, 2008, Nike acquired sports apparel supplier Umbro, known as the manufacturers of the England national football team's kit, in a deal said to be worth £285 million (about US$600 million).^[15] Other subsidiaries previously owned and subsequently sold by Nike include Bauer Hockey and Starter.^[16]

Products[link]

A Nike brand athletic shoe

A pair of Nike Air Jordan I basketball shoes

Nike produces a wide range of sports equipment. Their first products were track running shoes. They currently also make shoes, jerseys, shorts, baselayers, etc. for a wide range of sports, including track and field, baseball, ice hockey, tennis, association football (soccer), lacrosse, basketball, and cricket. Nike Air Max is a line of shoes first released by Nike, Inc. in 1987. The most recent additions to their line are the Nike 6.0, Nike NYX, and Nike SB shoes, designed for skateboarding. Nike has recently introduced cricket shoes called Air Zoom Yorker, designed to be 30% lighter than their competitors'.^[17] In 2008, Nike introduced the Air Jordan XX3, a high-performance basketball shoe designed with the environment in mind.

Nike sells an assortment of products, including shoes and apparel for sports activities like association football,^[18] basketball, running, combat sports, tennis, American football, athletics, golf, and cross training for men, women, and children. Nike also sells shoes for outdoor activities such as tennis, golf, skateboarding, association football, baseball, American football, cycling, volleyball, wrestling, cheerleading, aquatic activities, auto racing, and other athletic and recreational uses. Nike is well known and popular in youth culture, chav culture and hip hop culture for their supplying of urban fashion clothing. Nike recently teamed up with Apple Inc. to produce the Nike+ product that monitors a runner's performance via a radio device in the shoe that links to the iPod nano. While the product generates useful statistics, it has been criticized by researchers who were able to identify users' RFID devices from 60 feet (18 m) away using small, concealable intelligence motes in a wireless sensor network.^[19][20]

In 2004, Nike launched the SPARQ Training Program/Division.^{[citation needed]}

Some of Nike's newest shoes contain Flywire and Lunarlite Foam to reduce weight.^[21]

On July 15, 2009, the Nike+ Sports Band was released in stores. The product records distance run and calories expended, keeps time, and also gives runners new programs online they could try running.^{[clarification needed]}

The 2010 Nike Pro Combat jersey collection were worn by teams from the following universities: Miami, Alabama, Boise State, Florida, Ohio State, Oregon State, Texas Christian University, Virginia Tech, West Virginia, and Pittsburgh. Teams will wear these jerseys in key matchups as well as any time the athletic department deems it necessary.^[22]

Headquarters[link]

Nike's world headquarters are surrounded by the city of Beaverton, but are within unincorporated Washington County. The city attempted to forcibly annex Nike's headquarters, which led to a lawsuit by Nike, and lobbying by the company that ultimately ended in Oregon Senate Bill 887 of 2005. Under that bill's terms, Beaverton is specifically barred from forcibly annexing the land that Nike and Columbia Sportswear occupy in Washington County for 35 years, while Electro Scientific Industries and Tektronix receive the same protection for 30 years.^[23]

Manufacturing[link]

Nike has contracted with more than 700 shops around the world and has offices located in 45 countries outside the United States.^[24] Most of the factories are located in Asia, including Indonesia, China, Taiwan, India^[25], Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, Philippines, and Malaysia.^[26] Nike is hesitant to disclose information about the contract companies it works with. However, due to harsh criticism from some organizations like CorpWatch, Nike has disclosed information about its contract factories in its Corporate Governance Report.

Human rights concerns[link]

Sweatshops[link]

Nike has been criticized for contracting with factories (known as Nike sweatshops) in countries such as China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Mexico. Vietnam Labor Watch, an activist group, has documented that factories contracted by Nike have violated minimum wage and overtime laws in Vietnam as late as 1996, although Nike claims that this practice has been stopped.^[27] The company has been subject to much critical coverage of the often poor working conditions and exploitation of cheap overseas labor employed in the free trade zones where their goods are typically manufactured. Sources for this criticism include Naomi Klein's book No Logo and Michael Moore documentaries.

During the 1990s, Nike faced criticism for the use of child labor in Cambodia and Pakistan in factories it contracted to manufacture soccer balls. Although Nike took action to curb or at least reduce the practice, they continue to contract their production to companies that operate in areas where inadequate regulation and monitoring make it hard to ensure that child labor is not being used.^[28]

In 2001, a BBC documentary uncovered occurrences of child labor and poor working conditions in a Cambodian factory used by Nike.^[29] The documentary focused on six girls, who all worked seven days a week, often 16 hours a day.

Campaigns have been taken up by many colleges and universities, especially anti-globalisation groups, as well as several anti-sweatshop groups such as the United Students Against Sweatshops.^[30] Despite these campaigns, however, Nike's annual revenues have increased from US$6.4 billion in 1996 to nearly US$17 billion in 2007, according to the company's annual reports.

A July 2008 investigation by Australian Channel 7 News found a large number of cases involving forced labour in one of the largest Nike apparel factories. The factory located in Malaysia was filmed by an undercover crew who found instances of squalid living conditions and forced labour. Nike have since stated that they will take corrective action to ensure the abuse does not continue.^[31]

As of July 2011, Nike stated that two-thirds of its factories producing Converse products still do not meet the company's standards for worker treatment. A July 2011 Associated Press article stated that employees at the company's plants in Indonesia reported constant abuse from supervisors.^[32]

China Olympics[link]

Nike also caused controversy during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China, when its sponsored Chinese athlete, Liu Xiang, withdrew from the Olympic 110 metre hurdles, leaving the track after a false start by another competitor. Liu claimed that he withdrew due an ankle injury.^[33] However, an anonymous message was posted on the internet, purportedly from a source close to Nike, claiming that the corporation had forced Liu to withdraw as he was unlikely to win, thereby tarnishing their image. Nike responded by announcing that "we have immediately asked relevant [Chinese] government departments to investigate those that started the rumour".^[34]

Environmental record[link]

According to the New England-based environmental organization Clean Air-Cool Planet, Nike ranks among the top three companies (out of 56) in a survey of climate-friendly companies.^[35] Nike has also been praised for its Nike Grind program (which closes the product lifecycle) by groups like Climate Counts.^[36] One campaign that Nike began for Earth Day 2008 was a commercial that featured basketball star Steve Nash wearing Nike's Trash Talk Shoe, which had been constructed in February 2008 from pieces of leather and synthetic leather waste from factory floors. The Trash Talk Shoe also featured a sole composed of ground-up rubber from a shoe recycling program. Nike claims this is the first performance basketball shoe that has been created from manufacturing waste, but it only produced 5,000 pairs for sale.^[37]

Another project Nike has begun is called Nike's Reuse-A-Shoe program. This program, started in 1993, is Nike's longest-running program that benefits both the environment and the community by collecting old athletic shoes of any type in order to process and recycle them. The material that is produced is then used to help create sports surfaces such as basketball courts, running tracks, and playgrounds.^[38]

A project through the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found workers were exposed to toxic isocyanates and other chemicals in footwear factories in Thailand. In addition to inhalation, dermal exposure was the biggest problem found. This could result in allergic reactions including asthmatic reactions.^[39][40]

Marketing strategy[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007)

Nike promotes its products by sponsorship agreements with celebrity athletes, professional teams and college athletic teams. However, Nike's marketing mix contains many elements besides promotion. These are summarized below.

Advertising[link]

In 1982, Nike aired its first national television ads, created by newly formed ad agency Wieden+Kennedy (W+K), during the broadcast of the New York Marathon. This was the beginning of a successful partnership between Nike and W+K that remains intact today. The Cannes Advertising Festival has named Nike its Advertiser of the Year in 1994 and 2003, making it the first and only company to receive that honor twice.^[41]

Nike also has earned the Emmy Award for best commercial twice since the award was first created in the 1990s. The first was for "The Morning After," a satirical look at what a runner might face on the morning of January 1, 2000 if every dire prediction about the Y2K problem came to fruition.^[42] The second was for a 2002 spot called "Move," which featured a series of famous and everyday athletes in a variety of athletic pursuits.^[43]

In addition to garnering awards, however, Nike advertising has generated its fair share of controversy.

Beatles song[link]

Nike was criticized for its use of the Beatles song "Revolution" in a 1987 commercial against the wishes of Apple Records, the Beatles' recording company. Nike paid US$250,000 to Capitol Records Inc., which held the North American licensing rights to the recordings, for the right to use the Beatles' rendition for a year.

Apple sued Nike Inc., Capitol Records Inc., EMI Records Inc. and Wieden+Kennedy for $15 million.^[44] Capitol-EMI countered by saying the lawsuit was "groundless" because Capitol had licensed the use of "Revolution" with the "active support and encouragement of Yoko Ono Lennon, a shareholder and director of Apple."

According to a November 9, 1989 article in the Los Angeles Daily News, "a tangle of lawsuits between the Beatles and their American and British record companies has been settled." One condition of the out-of-court settlement was that terms of the agreement would be kept secret. The settlement was reached among the three parties involved: surviving Beatles George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr; Yoko Ono; and Apple, EMI and Capitol Records. A spokesman for Yoko Ono noted, "It's such a confusing myriad of issues that even people who have been close to the principals have a difficult time grasping it. Attorneys on both sides of the Atlantic have probably put their children through college on this."

Nike discontinued airing ads featuring "Revolution" in March 1988. Yoko Ono later gave permission to Nike to use John Lennon's "Instant Karma" in another advertisement.

Minor Threat advertisement[link]

In late June 2005, Nike received criticism from Ian MacKaye, owner of Dischord Records, guitarist/vocalist for Fugazi and The Evens, and front man of the defunct punk band Minor Threat, for appropriating imagery and text from Minor Threat's 1981 self-titled album's cover art in a flyer promoting Nike Skateboarding's 2005 East Coast demo tour.
On June 27, Nike Skateboarding's website issued an apology to Dischord, Minor Threat, and fans of both and announced that they have tried to remove and dispose of all flyers. They stated that the people who designed it were skateboarders and Minor Threat fans themselves who created the advertisement out of respect and appreciation for the band.^[45] The dispute was eventually settled out of court between Nike and Minor Threat. The exact details of the settlement have never been disclosed.

Chinese-themed advertisement[link]

Niketown at Oxford Circus, London

Rafael Nadal is currently sponsored by Nike, Inc. (Note the swoosh on Nadal's attire)

In 2004, an ad about LeBron James beating cartoon martial arts masters and slaying a Chinese dragon with martial arts offended Chinese authorities,^[who?] who called the ad blasphemous and insulting to national dignity and to the dragon. The advertisement was later banned in China. In early 2007, the ad was reinstated in China for unknown reasons.^[46]

Nike 6.0[link]

The company rolled out a new campaign in June 2011 called "Nike 6.0" that was aimed at extreme sport athletes. As part of the campaign, Nike introduced a new line of T-shirts that include phrases such as "Dope", "Get High" and "Ride Pipe" – sports lingo that is also a double entendre for drug use. Boston Mayor Thomas Menino expressed his objection to the shirts after seeing them in a window display at the city's Niketown and asked the store to remove the display. "What we don't need is a major corporation like Nike, which tries to appeal to the younger generation, out there giving credence to the drug issue," Menino told The Boston Herald. A company official stated the shirts were meant exclusively to pay homage to extreme sports, and that Nike does not condone the illegal use of drugs.^[47] Nike was forced to replace the shirt line.^[48]

Sponsorship[link]

Nike pays top athletes in many sports to use their products and promote and advertise their technology and design.

Nike's first professional athlete endorser was Romanian tennis player Ilie Năstase. The first track endorser was distance runner Steve Prefontaine. Prefontaine was the prized pupil of the company's co-founder, Bill Bowerman, while he coached at the University of Oregon. Today, the Steve Prefontaine Building is named in his honor at Nike's corporate headquarters.

Besides Prefontaine, Nike has also sponsored many other successful track and field athletes over the years, such as Carl Lewis, Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Sebastian Coe. However, it is the signing of basketball player Michael Jordan in 1984, with his subsequent promotion of Nike over the course of his storied career, with Spike Lee as Mars Blackmon, that proved to be one of the biggest boosts to Nike's publicity and sales.

During the past 20 years especially, Nike has been one of the major clothing and footwear sponsors for leading tennis players. Some of the more successful tennis players currently or formerly sponsored include: James Blake, Jim Courier, Roger Federer, Lleyton Hewitt, Juan Martín del Potro, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Pete Sampras, Marion Bartoli, Lindsay Davenport, Daniela Hantuchová, Mary Pierce, Maria Sharapova, and Serena Williams.

Nike was the official kit sponsor for the Indian cricket team for five years, from 2006 until the end of 2010. Nike beat Adidas and Puma by bidding US$43 million.^[49][50]

Nike sponsors some of the leading clubs in world football, including the national teams of Serbia, India, France, Brazil, Portugal, the Netherlands, the United States, and Malaysia.

Some of the world's top golf players are sponsored by Nike, among them Tiger Woods, Stewart Cink, Lucas Glover, Michelle Wie, Trevor Immelman, and Paul Casey.

Nike also sponsors various minor events including Hoop It Up (high school basketball) and The Golden West Invitational (high school track and field). Nike uses web sites as a promotional tool to cover these events. Nike also has several websites for individual sports, including nikebasketball.com, nikefootball.com, and nikerunning.com.

Nike is a major sponsor of athletic programs at Penn State and has decided not to abandon that relationship in the wake of the Penn State sex abuse scandal.^[51]

See also[link]

	Companies portal
	Oregon portal
	United States portal

• Nike sweatshops
• List of companies of the United States
• List of swimwear brands

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Egan, Timothy (September 13, 1998). "The swoon of the swoosh". New York Times Magazine. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Nike, Inc.

• Official website
• Nikebiz.com – Business Site
• Oregon Senate Bill 887, as signed by Governor Ted Kulongoski
• Company summary, from the New York Stock Exchange website
• Nike at the Open Directory Project

Coordinates: 45°30′33″N 122°49′48″W / 45.5093°N 122.8299°W / 45.5093; -122.8299

v t e Nike, Inc. Corporate directors John G. Connors  · Jill Ker Conway  · Tim Cook  · Ralph D. DeNunzio  · Alan B. Graf  · Douglas G. Houser  · Phil Knight  · John C. Lechleiter  · Mark Parker  · Johnathan A. Rodgers  · Orin C. Smith  · John Thompson  · Phyllis M. Wise  · Keith White Assets and products Air Jordan  · Air Melo Line  · Cole Haan  · Converse  · Exeter Brands Group  · Hurley  · Nike Air Max  · Nike Considered  · Nike CTR360 Maestri  · Nike Flywire  · Nike Free  · Nike Golf  · Nike Pro  · Nike Mercurial Vapor  · Nike Shox  · Nike SB  · Swoosh  · Air Force 1  · Team Starter  · Nike Tiempo  · Nike Total 90  · Umbro  · Nike Multi-Turf Miscellaneous Nike Sports Research Lab  · Nike ONE  · Spark Suit Annual revenue: $19.2 billion USD (2.9% FY 2009)  · Employees: 26,500  · Stock symbol: NYSE: NKE · Website: nike.com

Inc. may refer to:

• Incorporation (business), an abbreviation of Incorporated, a suffix indicating a corporation
• Inc. (magazine), an American business magazine
• Incoming
• Include, included, or including

Inc may refer to:

• Increment, a short form in computer programming languages, particularly assembler mnemonics

See also[link]

• INC (disambiguation)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Mark Parker at the World Economic Forum in 2008.

'Mark Parker is Nike, Inc.'s third CEO, after William Perez resigned in January 2006 citing differences with his predecessor as CEO, Phil Knight.^[1]

Parker was born in Poughkeepsie, New York and earned his bachelor's degree in political science at Penn State University in 1977. He ran on the Penn State track team.^[2] He joined Nike in 1979 as a footwear designer based in its R&D facility in Exeter, New Hampshire.

Parker has held a variety of positions during his tenure at Nike. He became Division Vice President in charge of development in 1987, Corporate Vice President in 1989, General Manager in 1993, and Vice President of Global Footwear in 1998.^[3] Prior to becoming CEO, he served as co-president (with Charlie Denson) of the Nike brand beginning March 2001. Parker's salary for 2008 was $7.6 million. He still participates in shoe design.^[2]

Parker has committed to ensuring that Nike remain environmentally conscious. After 10 years of work, Parker and his team launched the first "Green Shoe" that adheres to the principles of sustainability.^[4]

Compensation[link]

While CEO of Nike in 2008, Mark G. Parker earned a total compensation of $7,620,700, which included a base salary of $1,376,923, a cash bonus of $2,682,684, stocks granted of $1,500,000, and options granted of $1,872,450.^[5]

Art Collection[link]

Mark Parker is an avid arts supporter with an extensive ongoing collection of modern, low brow and underground contemporary art, along with many other one-of-a-kind collectibles. Notable artists from Parker's collection include Andy Warhol, Mark Ryden, Kris Kuksi, Todd Shorr, Tim Biskup, Sas Christian, Sebastian Kruger, Charles Krafft, Scott Musgrove, Michael Leavitt, and Randy Regier. Other notable items include rare movie ephemera such as original props and models from "Mars Attacks!" (1996), "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (1951), "Back to the Future" (1989) and "Batman" (1989).^[6]

References[link]

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Oscar Pistorius

Pistorius taking part in the Landsmót ungmennafélags Íslands in Kópavogur, Iceland, the largest sporting event in the country, on 8 July 2007
Personal information
Nickname(s)	Blade Runner; the fastest man on no legs; "Oz" Pistorius[1]
Born	(1986-11-22) 22 November 1986 (age 25) Sandton, Johannesburg, Transvaal Province (now Gauteng Province), South Africa
Height	1.86 m (6 ft 1 1⁄4 in) in prosthetics[2]
Weight	80.5 kg (177 lb) (2007)[3]
Website	www.oscarpistorius.com
Sport
Country	South Africa
Sport	Running
Event(s)	Sprints (100, 200, 400 m)
Achievements and titles
World finals	2005 Paralympic World Cup: 100 m (T44) – Gold; 200 m (T44) – Gold
National finals	2007 South African Senior Athletics Championships: 400 m (T44) – Gold
Paralympic finals	2008 Summer Paralympics: 100 m (T44) – Gold, 200 m (T44) – Gold; 400 m (T44) – Gold 2004 Summer Paralympics: 100 m (T44) – Bronze; 200 m (T44) – Gold
Highest world ranking	100 m: 1st (2008)[4] 200 m: 1st (2008)[5] 400 m: 1st (2008)[6]
Personal best(s)	100 m (T44): 10.91 s (2007, WR) 200 m (T44): 21.41 s (2010, WR) [7] 400 m (T44): 45.07
Medal record Men's athletics Competitor for  South Africa World Championships Silver 2011 Daegu 4 × 400 m relay Paralympic Games Gold 2004 Athens 200 metres (T44) Gold 2008 Beijing 100 metres (T44) Gold 2008 Beijing 200 metres (T44) Gold 2008 Beijing 400 metres (T44) Bronze 2004 Athens 100 metres (T44)
Updated on 14 September 2008.

Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius (born 22 November 1986) is a South African sprint runner. Known as the "Blade Runner" and "the fastest man on no legs", Pistorius, who has a double amputation, is the world record holder in the 100, 200 and 400 metres (sport class T44) events and runs with the aid of Cheetah Flex-Foot carbon fibre transtibial artificial limbs by Ossur.

In 2007, Pistorius took part in his first international competitions for able-bodied athletes. However, his artificial lower legs, while enabling him to compete, have generated claims that he has an unfair advantage over able-bodied runners. The same year, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) amended its competition rules to ban the use of "any technical device that incorporates springs, wheels or any other element that provides a user with an advantage over another athlete not using such a device". The federation claimed that the amendment was not specifically aimed at Pistorius. After monitoring his track performances and carrying out tests, scientists took the view that Pistorius enjoyed considerable advantages over athletes without prosthetic limbs. On the strength of these findings, on 14 January 2008 the IAAF ruled him ineligible for competitions conducted under its rules, including the 2008 Summer Olympics. This decision was reversed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on 16 May 2008, the Court ruling overall there was no evidence that Pistorius had any net advantage over able-bodied athletes.

Although eligible to compete in the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, Pistorius did not qualify for the South African team. Despite achieving third place and a personal best time of 46.25 seconds in the 400 metres in Lucerne, Switzerland, on 16 July 2008, this was short of the Olympic qualification time of 45.55 seconds. He was also not selected by the South African Olympic Committee for the 4 × 400 metres relay team as there were four other runners who had achieved better times. At the 2008 Summer Paralympics, he took the gold medals in the 100, 200 and 400 metres (T44) sprints.

With his 400 m time of 45.07 on 19 July 2011, he achieved the "A" qualifying standard for the 2011 World Championships and 2012 Olympics. He participated in the 400m sprint and 4x400m relay, being eliminated in the semi-final of the 400m sprint (finishing last with a time of 46.19secs) and being part of South Africa's silver medal winning relay team, making him the first amputee to win an able-bodied world track medal, although he was not selected for the final.

Early years and education[link]

Oscar Pistorius was born to Henke and Sheila Pistorius on 22 November 1986 in Sandton, Johannesburg, in what was then Transvaal Province (now Gauteng Province) of South Africa,^[1] with congenital absence of the fibula in both legs. When he was 11 months old, his legs were amputated halfway between his knees and ankles.^[3] He attended Constantia Kloof Primary^[8] and Pretoria Boys High School^[1][9] where, between the ages of 11 and 13, he played rugby union in the school's third XV team, water polo and tennis. He also played water polo and tennis at provincial level. In addition, Pistorius took part in club Olympic wrestling.^[2][10][11] After a serious rugby knee injury in June 2003, he was introduced to running in January 2004 while undergoing rehabilitation, and "never looked back".^[10]

Pistorius is studying for a Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com.)^[12] in business management with sports science at the University of Pretoria;^[2][10] in a June 2008 interview for his University's website, he joked: "I won't graduate soon. With all the training I have had to cut down on my subjects. Hopefully I'll finish by the time I'm 30!"^[12] His sporting motto is: "You're not disabled by the disabilities you have, you are able by the abilities you have."^[10]

Sporting career[link]

Known as the "Blade Runner"^[13] and "the fastest man on no legs",^[14][15] he took part in the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens and came third overall in the T44 (one leg amputated below the knee)^[11] 100-metre event.^[16] Despite falling in the preliminary round for the 200 metres, he qualified for the final.^[17] He went on to win the final with a world record time of 21.97 seconds, beating American runners with a single amputation Marlon Shirley and Brian Frasure.^[16]

In 2005, Pistorius finished sixth in the able-bodied South African Championships over 400 metres with a world-record time of 47.34 seconds,^[11] and at the Paralympic World Cup in the same year he won gold in the 100 metres and 200 metres, beating his previous 200-metre world record.^[18][19] At the 2006 Paralympic Athletics World Championships, Pistorius won gold in the 100, 200 and 400-metre events, breaking the world record over 200 metres.^[20] On 17 March 2007, he set a disability sports world record for the 400 metres (46.56 seconds) at the South African Senior Athletics Championships in Durban,^[21] and at the Nedbank Championships for the Physically Disabled held in Johannesburg in April 2007, he became the world record holder of the 100 and 200-metre events with times of 10.91 and 21.58 seconds respectively.^[22][23]

Pistorius was invited by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to take part in what would have been his first international able-bodied event, the 400-metre race at the IAAF Grand Prix in Helsinki, Finland, in July 2005. He was unable to attend, however, because of school commitments.^[24] On 13 July 2007, Pistorius ran in the 400-metre race at Rome's Golden Gala and finished second in run B with a time of 46.90 seconds, behind Stefano Braciola who ran 46.72 seconds.^[25] This was a warm-up for his appearance at the 400 metres at the Norwich Union British Grand Prix at the Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield on 15 July 2007.^[26] As American Olympic champion Jeremy Wariner stumbled at the start of the race and stopped running, Pistorius took seventh place in a field of eight in wet conditions with a time of 47.65 seconds. However, he was later disqualified for running outside his lane. The race was won by American Angelo Taylor with a time of 45.25 seconds.^[27][28] Pistorius has ambitions of competing in other able-bodied events. In particular, he had set his sights on competing at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China,^[29] but was ultimately not selected by the South African Olympic Committee (see below).

Pistorius's autobiography, Dream Runner, was published in Italian in 2008 by Gianni Merlo, a journalist with La Gazzetta dello Sport.^[30] An English version entitled Blade Runner was released in 2009.^[31]

Dispute over prosthetics[link]

The South African newspaper The Citizen announcing the IAAF's decision to bar Pistorius from its competitions – photographed in Johannesburg on 16 January 2008.

Pistorius has been the subject of criticism because of claims that his artificial limbs give him an advantage over runners with natural ankles and feet. He runs with J-shaped carbon-fibre prosthetics called the "Cheetah Flex-Foot" manufactured by Icelandic company Ossur.^[11]

On 26 March 2007, the IAAF amended its competition rules to include a ban on the use of "any technical device that incorporates springs, wheels or any other element that provides a user with an advantage over another athlete not using such a device".^[32] It claimed that the amendment was not specifically aimed at Pistorius. To decide if he is running with an unfair advantage, the IAAF monitored his track performances using high-definition cameras to film his race against Italian club runners in Rome on 13 July, and his 400 metres in Sheffield on 15 July 2007,^[14][33] at which he placed last.^[28]

In November 2007, Oscar was invited to take part in a series of scientific tests at the Cologne Sports University under the guidance of Professor of Biomechanics Dr Peter Brüggemann in conjunction with Mr Elio Locatelli, who was responsible with the IAAF of all technical issues. After two days of tests Brüggemann reported on his findings on behalf of the IAAF. The report claimed that Pistorius's limbs used 25% less energy than runners with complete natural legs to run at the same speed, and that they led to less vertical motion combined with 30% less mechanical work for lifting the body.^[34] In December, Brüggemann told Die Welt newspaper that Pistorius "has considerable advantages over athletes without prosthetic limbs who were tested by us. It was more than just a few percentage points. I did not expect it to be so clear."^[35] Based on these findings, on 14 January 2008 the IAAF ruled Pistorius's prostheses ineligible for use in competitions conducted under the IAAF rules, including the 2008 Summer Olympics.^[36] Pistorius called the decision "premature and highly subjective" and pledged to continue fighting for his dream. His manager Peet van Zyl said his appeal would be based on advice from United States experts who had said that the report "did not take enough variables into consideration".^[37]

In February 2008, Pistorius employed the services of law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf to challenge the ruling via an appeal and later that month, travelled to America to take part in a series of further tests carried out at Rice University in Houston by a team of scientists including Hugh Herr, PhD and Rodger Kram, PhD

Pistorius subsequently appealed against the adverse decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, Switzerland, and appeared before the tribunal at the end of April 2008.^[38]

After a two day hearing, on 16 May 2008 the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld Oscar’s appeal and the IAAF council decision was revoked with immediate effect. The CAS panel unanimously determined that Dr. Brüggemann only tested Oscar’s biomechanics at full-speed when he was running in a straight line (unlike a real 400m race), that the report did not consider the disadvantages that Oscar suffers at the start and acceleration phases of the race, that Dr. Brüggemann did not consider disadvantages that Oscar suffers, and that overall there was no evidence that Oscar had any net advantage over able-bodied athletes.^[39] In response to the announcement, Pistorius said: "My focus throughout this appeal has been to ensure that disabled athletes be given the chance to compete and compete fairly with able-bodied athletes. I look forward to continuing my quest to qualify for the Olympics."^[40]

Attempts to qualify for 2008 Summer Olympics[link]

To have a chance of representing South Africa at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing in the individual 400-metre race, Pistorius had to attain the Olympic "A" standard time of 45.55 seconds; the "B" qualifying time of 45.95 seconds if no other athlete from his country achieved the faster time did not apply. Each national athletics federation is permitted to enter three athletes in an event if the "A" standard is met, and only one athlete if the "B" standard is met.^[41] However, he was eligible for selection as a member of the relay squad without qualifying.^[42] His best chance was to try for a time of close to 46 seconds to make the 4 × 400-metre relay team. However, he said: "If I make the team I don't want to be the reserve for the relay, I want to be in the top four. I want to bring something to the race and make the relay stronger." To give him a chance of making the South African Olympic team, selectors delayed naming the team until 17 July.^[43]

On 2 July 2008, Pistorius competed in the 400 metres in the B race of the Notturna International in Milan but was "disappointed"^[43][44] when he failed to achieve the minimum Olympic qualification time, completing the race in fourth place in 47.78 seconds.^[43][45] His performance on 11 July 2008 at the Rome Golden Gala was an improvement of more than a second, though his sixth-place time of 46.62 seconds in the B race was still short of the Olympic qualification time. Nonetheless, he was pleased with his performance, commenting that he felt he could improve on it.^[46]

On 15 July 2008, IAAF general secretary Pierre Weiss commented that the world athletics body preferred that the South African Olympic Committee did not select Pistorius for its 4 × 400 metres relay team "for reasons of safety", saying that Pistorius could cause "serious damage" and risk the physical safety of himself and other athletes if he ran in the main pack of the relay.^[47] Pistorius branded this as the IAAF's "last desperate attempt" to get him not to qualify,^[48] and threatened legal action if the Federation did not confirm that it had no objections to his participation in the relay.^[49] The IAAF responded by issuing a statement saying that Pistorius was welcome to seek qualification for the Olympics and future competitions under IAAF rules: "The IAAF fully respects the recent CAS decision regarding the eligibility of Oscar Pistorius to compete in IAAF competitions, and certainly has no wish to influence the South African Olympic Committee, who has full authority to select a men's 4x400m relay team for the Beijing Olympics."^[50][51]

Despite coming third and running a personal best time of 46.25 seconds at the Spitzen Leichtathletik meeting in Lucerne on 16 July 2008, Pistorius failed in his final opportunity to qualify for the 400 metres at the 2008 Summer Olympics by 0.70 seconds. Athletics South Africa later announced that he would also not be selected for the 4 × 400 metres relay team as four other runners had better times.^[50][52] If Pistorius had been picked, he would have become the first runner with a leg amputation to participate in the Olympic Games.^[53] Asked about the possibility of the IAAF offering him a wild card to take part in the Olympics, Pistorius responded, "I do not believe that I would accept. If I have to take part in the Beijing Games I should do it because I qualified." Instead, he expressed a preference for focusing on getting into the 2012 Summer Olympics in London,^[44] noting that it was a more realistic target as "[s]printers usually reach their peak between 26 and 29. I will be 25 in London and I'll also have two, three years' preparation."^[45]

2008 Summer Paralympics[link]

Pistorius participated in the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing in the 100, 200 and 400 metres (T44). On 9 September, in the heats of the 100 metres, he set a Paralympic record with his time of 11.16 seconds.^[54] Later, following a slow start, he rallied to snatch gold from the United States' Jerome Singleton in the 100 metres in a time of 11.17 seconds, 0.03 seconds ahead of the silver medallist.^[55] Four days later, on 13 September, the defending Paralympic champion in the 200 metres sprint^[56] won his second gold in the event in a time of 21.67 seconds,^[57] setting another Paralympic record.^[54] He completed a hat-trick by winning gold in the 400 metres in a world-record time of 47.49 seconds on 16 September,^[58] calling it "a memory that will stay with me for the rest of my life".^[59]

2011 and qualification for 2012 Summer Olympics[link]

Pistorius during the 2011 World Athletics Championships in Daegu.

In January 2011, a slimmer, trimmer Pistorius won three IPC Athletics World titles in New Zealand but was beaten for the first time in seven years in the 100m by American Jerome Singleton.^[60] He subsequently won the T44 400m in 47.28s and the 100m in 11.04s at the BT Paralympic World Cup in May to reassert himself as the world’s leading Paralympic sprinter.^[61]

Pistorius competed across a number of able-bodied races in the summer of 2011 and posted three times under 46 seconds but it was in Lignano, Italy, on 19 July that he set a personal best of 45.07s in the 400m, attaining the World Championships and Olympic Games ‘A’ standard qualification mark.^[62]

On 8 August 2011 it was announced that he had been included in the South African team for the World Championships in Daegu and had been selected for the 400m and the 4 × 400 metre relay squad.

To be selected for the South African team to compete at the Olympic Games in London, Oscar must again run inside the 400m ‘A’ standard of 45.25 seconds between January and June 2012.

In the heats of the 400 metre in the 2011 World Championships in Daegu, Oscar Pistorius ran a 45.39 and qualified for the semi-final. However, in the semi-final, Pistorius ran 46.19 and was eliminated.^[63] Had he run the 45.39 in the semi-final, that time would have qualified him for the final.^[64] In the heats of the 4 × 400m relay, Oscar ran the opening leg as South Africa advanced to the finals with a national record time of 2 minutes, 59.21 seconds. However, Pistorius was excluded from the finals. He still won the silver medal because he ran in the heats. Reflecting on his World Championship debut, Pistorius said: "I really enjoyed the whole experience. I ran my second fastest time ever in the heats and was really pleased to have reached the semi-finals. In the relay I was unbelievably chuffed to have broken the South African record, and hopefully my name will stay on that for a long time to come."^[65]

Medals[link]

Disability sports events[link]

Able-bodied sports events[link]

Time comparisons[link]

The following tables show comparisons between Pistorius's best times at official events and the Olympic and World record winning times as at 20 August 2009 over the same distance:

100 m[link]

200 m[link]

400 m[link]

Other awards and accolades[link]

In 2006, Pistorius was conferred the Order of Ikhamanga in Bronze (OIB) by the President of South Africa for outstanding achievement in sports.^[1] On 9 December 2007, Pistorius was awarded the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Helen Rollason Award, which is conferred for outstanding courage and achievement in the face of adversity.^[77]

In May 2008, Pistorius made the "2008 TIME 100" – Time magazine's annual list of the world's most influential people – appearing third in the "Heroes & Pioneers" section. Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind person to climb Mount Everest, wrote in an essay that Pistorius was "on the cusp of a paradigm shift in which disability becomes ability, disadvantage becomes advantage. Yet we mustn't lose sight of what makes an athlete great. It's too easy to credit Pistorius' success to technology. Through birth or circumstance, some are given certain gifts, but it's what one does with those gifts, the hours devoted to training, the desire to be the best, that is at the true heart of a champion."^[78]

In February 2012 Pistorius was awarded the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability for 2012.^[79] He is the third South African to receive this award after Ernst van Dyk in 2006 and Natalie du Toit in 2010.

Personal life[link]

Pistorius has distant Italian ancestry – his mother's grandfather was an Italian emigrant to Kenya.^[80][81] He has an elder brother, Carl, and a younger sister, Aimée.^[12][82]

Pistorius is a dedicated supporter of Italian Serie A club Lazio. This is because his best friend is Italian and also a fan of the club.^[81]

In 2008, Pistorius collaborated in the release of a music CD called Olympic Dream. Produced in Italy, it consists of disco remixes of music pieces that Pistorius finds inspirational, and two tracks written for him, "Olympic Dream" and "Run Boy Run", which he provided voiceovers for. Part of the CD's proceeds of sale will go to charity.^[83]

Notes[link]