ON THE RUN: South African Oscar Pistorius comes out of the starting blocks during his men’s 400-meter heat at the IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea, on Aug. 28, 2011. His last chance to become the first Paralympian to qualify for the London Olympics comes in Saturday’s meet at Randall’s Island. (
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“I do not run like a man running aimlessly.” — 1 Corinthians 9:26
The Bible verse is tattooed right there on his left shoulder, a souvenir from an earlier visit to a SoHo tattoo parlor.
But when South African runner Oscar Pistorius returns to the city Saturday on Randall’s Island, it will be clear that the inked mantra goes without saying: The double amputee will attempt to run the 400 meters in 45.30 seconds, earning a guaranteed spot in this summer’s Olympics in London and becoming the first Paralympic athlete to compete in the Games.
Qualifying may be within his grasp. Born without either calf bone called the fibula, Pistorius, 25, lost both legs below the knee at age 11. Four years later, he lost his mother. He became a competitive athlete despite it all — and after a rugby injury turned him to running, he never turned back.
He ran a personal best of 45.07 last July to reach the semis at the World Championship and a 45.20 in Pretoria in March. But according to South Africa’s strict qualifying standards, he must meet the Olympic A standard of 45.30 again before the end of the month.
After a sore hip and a string of subpar races — the latest a 46.86 at last Saturday’s Prefontaine Classic — he already has entered the 400 meters in the African Championship at month’s end just in case. But his last best chance may come at the adidas Grand Prix at Icahn Stadium.
“Ultimately, I’m in very good shape, feeling quite strong,’’ Pistorius told The Post. “I’m pretty sure it’ll be quick in New York. We’ve got a second chance.’’
The debate over whether he should be eligible for Olympic competition will be harder to win. He’s been nicknamed “Blade Runner” for the J-shaped carbon-fiber prostheses he wears called the Flex-Foot Cheetah — but others have used less fond labels.
Several of his competitors have chafed at his use of modern technology. Reigning Olympic 400 champ LaShawn Merritt — who served a 21-month ban from racing for a positive steroid test — has voiced concerns over prosthetic limbs and the use of technology, saying, “I just hope the federation keeps track of what is happening with him just so it is fair.”
“I spoke to him after that,” Pistorius said. “I know he doesn’t mean any ill intent. He’s a friend of mine.’’
In the spring of 2007, the International Association of Athletics Foundation (IAAF) amended its rules to ban the use of “any technical device that incorporates springs, wheels or any other element” from its meets. That November, Pistorius took part in a series of tests at the Cologne Sports University, which concluded that his limbs used 25 percent less energy than normal legs.
The following year, the IAAF ruled Pistorius’s prostheses ineligible for competition.
Undeterred, Pistorius hired a lawyer, and under the advisement of New York firm Dewey & LeBoeuf underwent further tests at Rice University. Jeffrey Kessler, who has represented the NFL, NBA and MLB Players Associations, led the appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, and won.
The CAS panel unanimously agreed that Cologne professor Dr. Peter Brüggemann had only tested Pistorius running in a straight line and didn’t account for the disadvantages he has coming out of the blocks or running the turns.
“The seeds of discriminatory feelings against the disabled run deep,’’ Kessler told The Post. “Legally, it’s 100 percent established he has no advantage.”
“There’s always going to be a small percentage of people who don’t [respect me]. Before we did the test, it was harder for me. No test had ever been done on a prosthetic leg. After we’d done the test, I had a leg to stand on,” Pistorius said, chuckling at his own pun.
Pistorius is affable, unpretentious and more than a little quirky. He crashed his motorboat into a pier once, recently got into an accident on his dirt bike, owns horses, dogs, and even once a pair of African white tigers. He trains in the converted garage of his personal trainer, an ex-rugby player — all financed partly through his estranged father, Henke, who owns a dolomite mine.
“You’re always going to find somebody to argue the facts, whether for advantage or just to debate the point for attention. It’s kind of tiring,’’ he said.
Added Kessler: “Emotionally, I believe most of the world-class athletes support Oscar. I’ve seen that personally. But there are a few that cannot accept the fact a disabled athlete without legs should be able to compete.”
Coming into Saturday’s meet, Pistorius is excited to get back to New York.
“I’ve spent some time in New York,” he said. “It’s one city I enjoy quite a bit. It reminds me of South Africa: very fast-paced, huge variety in cultures, histories and traditions. It’s not one-faceted or dull — there’s always something to do. South Africa is similar. There are cultures from all over the world, and New York’s very similar.’’
It was here that French fashion designer Thierry Mugler congratulated Pistorius for reaching last year’s World Championship by putting his image on the big screen in Times Square. It was an ad for a Mugler fragrance called A*Men, showing a superhero-style, chrome-bladed Pistorius racing to an emergency.
It read, “A modern hero, an exceptional athlete.’’ It could hardly have been more fitting.
brian.lewis@nypost.com