Oscar Pistorius

Oscar Pistorius
AP/Invision

Details

Also Known As:
Blade Runner, the fastest man on no legs, "Oz" Pistorius
Date of Birth:
November 22, 1986
Height:
6' 0"
Hometown:
Sandton

Bio:
Oscar Pistorius (born in Sandton, Johannesburg on November 22, 1986) is a South African sprint-runner. Oscar has double below the knee amputations, and he is the world record holder for the 200 and 400 metres events, and the joint record holder for the 100 metres in sprint running.

For a period of time, Oscar took part in international competitions for able-bodied athletes, but his Flex-Foot Cheetah carbon fibre transtibial prostheses made certain people believe that he had an advantage over abled bodied runners. The International Association of Athletics Federations conducted tests, and it was determined that Oscar had considerable advantages over athletes without prosthetic limbs. The IAAF then ruled him ineligible for certain competitions, and he was unable to compete in 2008 Olympics. This decision was later reversed.

He won gold medals in the 100, 200 and 400 metres sprints in the 2008 Paralympics. Oscar became the first double leg amputee to participate in the 2012 Summer Olympics, and he also took part in the 2012 Summer Paralympics, where he won two gold and one silver medals.

Oscar made headlines on Valentine’s Day 2013, when he was arrested in Pretoria, South Africa for murdering his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp. Initially, reports said that he had shot her because he believed her to be an intruder in his home. A 9mm pistol was removed from the scene, and he will not be receiving bail. The police had been previously called to his home responding to reports of a domestic nature.

Known For:
Oscar Pistorius is known for being a paralymic sprint runner, and for being the first double-amputee to compete in the Olympics. Sadly, the Olympic runner’s success has recently been shadowed by the murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in his home on Valentine’s Day 2013. Pistorius has been charged with the murder.

Personal Life:
Oscar was born with fibular hemimelia, and he had his legs amputated when he was 11 months old. He wrote an autobiography about his life as a disabled athlete, called Blade Runner. Oscar was in a relationship with the model Reeva Steenkamp, before he tragically killed her on Feb. 14, 2013.