Oscar Pistorius Biography

OSCAR PISTORIUS

Oscar Pistorius, in full Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius, byname Blade Runner, (born November 22, 1986, Johannesburg, South Africa),Pistorius was born without a fibula bone in either of his lower legs. His legs were amputated below the knee when he was 11 months old, and six months after that he learned to walk on fibreglass pegs. South African track-and-field sprinter and bilateral below-the-knee amputee who, at the 2012 London Games, became the first amputee to compete in an Olympic track event. He also was the first Paralympian to win a medal in open competition, when he earned a silver medal for his contribution to South Africa’s 4 × 400 relay team at the 2011 International Association of Athletics (IAAF) world championships. His athletic accomplishments were overshadowed when he was convicted of murder in 2015.

After becoming a Paralympic champion, Pistorius attempted to enter nondisabled international competitions, over persistent objections by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) and arguments that his artificial limbs gave an unfair advantage. Pistorius prevailed in this legal dispute. At the 2011 World Championships in Athletics, Pistorius was the first amputee to win a nondisabled world track medal. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Pistorius was the first double-leg amputee participant.