Oscar Pistorius

Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius (born 22 November 1986) is a South African former sprint runner.^[9] He is serving a prison sentence for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

Oscar Pistorius

Pistorius at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics in Daegu, South Korea
Personal information
Nickname(s)	Blade Runner; the fastest man on no legs; "Oz" Pistorius[1]
Born	(1986-11-22) 22 November 1986 (age 38) Sandton, Johannesburg, Transvaal Province (now Gauteng Province), South Africa
Alma mater	University of Pretoria, did not graduate
Height	1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in) in prosthetics[2]
Weight	80.6 kg (178 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	2004 Summer Paralympics: 100 m (T44) – Bronze; 200 m (T44) – Gold 2008 Summer Paralympics: 100 m (T44) – Gold, 200 m (T44) – Gold; 400 m (T44) – Gold 2012 Summer Paralympics: 200 m (T44) – Silver; 4 × 100 m relay – Gold; Men's 400 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): 21.30 s (2012, WR)[7] 400 m: 45.07 s[8]

Pistorius was born in Sandton, Johannesburg. Both of his legs are amputated above the ankle, and he runs with prostheses.^[10] Pistorius competed in races for athletes with disabilities. He first ran in international competitions for able-bodied athletes in 2007.

In 2011, he competed in the World Championships, and as part of South Africa's silver-medal-winning relay team, he became the first amputee to win an able-bodied world track medal. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Pistorius became the first double-leg amputee to compete in the Olympics. He also competed in the 2012 Summer Paralympics. He won gold medals in the men's 400 metre race in a Paralympic record time of 46.68 seconds and in the 4 × 100 metres relay in a world record time of 41.78 seconds. He also won a silver in the 200 metres race.

On 14 February 2013, he shot his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp dead in his house. He was charged with murder, but is not in prison because he paid a R1 million to be released on bail. His murder trial began on 3 March 2014 in Pretoria.^[11] During the trial, Pistorius was diagnosed with generalised anxiety disorder.^[12] On 11 September, he was found not guilty of murder. On 12 September 2014, he was convicted of manslaughter.^[13]

In November 2014, prosecutors asked the sentencing judge for permission to appeal the verdict. Permission was granted in December, and the case was presented to a five-person panel at the Supreme Court of Appeal. He was released on house arrest, and on 3 December 2015 the Appeal Court overturned the culpable homicide verdict and convicted him of murder.^[14] Pistorius appeared in court on 13 June 2016 to start the sentence hearing for the murder conviction; on 6 July he was sentenced to six years imprisonment for murder.^[15] On 24 November 2017, Pistorius's sentence was extended by 13 years and five months.^[16] He tried to appeal but failed.^[17]

On 5 January 2024, Pistorius was released from prison on parole. His sentence ends on 5 December 2029 and he will have conditions until the sentence is over.^[18]