Ossur, an Icelandic orthopedics company, which supplies South African athlete Oscar Pistorius with his carbon fiber running blades -- called the Flex Foot Cheetah -- is one of the leading innovators in hi-tech lower-limb devices.

CNN: Powering prosthetics with thoughts alone

It was on a new track in the northeastern corner of Italy that the double-amputee from South Africa trained last year for his Olympic debut, running lap after lap on his Cheetah Flex-Foot blades in preparation for his trip to the world's biggest sporting event.

NPR: News Of Pistorius Leaves Many In Disbelief

Shoes should flex where your foot bends, said Noreen Oswell, a podiatrist at The Foot Center at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Towers in Los Angeles.

CNN: Flip-flops present feet with a painful problem