An ethical issue that has been increasing in recent years concerns the rights of disabled people in sports competitions. Much controversy has surrounded Paralympic champion sprinter Oscar Pistorius over whether or not he should have been allowed to participate in the London Olympics. The fight between him and the International Olympic Committee ultimately was over the IOC's belief that its racing blades gave it an unfair advantage over Olympians. On the other hand, Pistorius and his supporters argued that his blades gave him no advantage over the competition. Although it is believed that disabled people using technological advances may have an advantage over able-bodied athletes, the results of various studies conducted on this topic are inconclusive. Therefore, there should be no reason why disabled athletes should not be allowed to compete against able-bodied athletes. Just because one has prosthetic limbs doesn't mean they shouldn't be banned from participating in the Olympics or any other type of sporting event. There appears to be little reason why disabled athletes should not be able to participate in sporting competitions with able-bodied athletes. The U.S. Department of Education recently proclaimed a “pivotal moment” for student-athletes with disabilities. These newly introduced guidelines have eliminated the previously vague policy and offer more detail on how the school can include students with disabilities in sports programs (Williams, 2013). These new guidelines may in some ways convey to these disabled female athletes what Title IX has done for women in sports. These guidelines state that schools must make reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities who are otherwise qualified to play on traditional teams in...... middle of paper ...... port. Athletes with disabilities should be able to participate in sporting events and the Olympics if they qualify. In the case of Oscar Pistorious, he was initially banned from participating in the Olympics due to the blade runner's alleged unfair advantages. Blade runners themselves have been around for several years now. You don't see disabled athletes like Pistorius breaking any 400m records. People believe that these "cheetah paws" are this kind of technology that allows a human to run faster. Furthermore, various research conducted on the blades only addressed the possible advantages of Pistorus, not the disadvantages attributed to it. As already mentioned, if disabled people broke world records, or even came close to them, it would be one thing, but they are not. Therefore disabled people have the right to compete in direct sporting competition.