Is Oscar Pistorius ready for redemption? 8 years after the Paralympian Blade Runner shot girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in South Africa, freedom is in sight – but her parents aren’t happy
- The former athlete was once adored for his Olympic achievements and charity work, but texts between him and Steenkamp led to accusations of being impulsive and aggressive
- Before Pistorius gets parole, he will meet Steenkamp’s parents – who “want the truth” and “more to the story” – as part of a victim offender dialogue programme
He was a global superstar athlete who had the world at his feet. She was an aspiring model who appeared to be on the cusp of South African fame after starring on a local reality television show.
Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius and his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp seemed like a match made in heaven. But in 2013, in the early hours of February 14, Pistorius gunned down Steenkamp while she was at his house in a locked bathroom. He claimed he thought she was an intruder. The state legal team offered a different version: that the couple had a fight and in a fit of rage, Pistorius had opened fire.
The athlete, once the world’s darling, was convicted of murder and sentenced to 13 years and five months behind bars. Suddenly, the man who had grabbed the hearts of a nation was cast out, his hero’s reputation forever destroyed.
Pistorius has been out of the public eye for many years, but that’s soon about to change as he’s now eligible for parole. However, before he finds freedom, the 35-year-old has first to undergo several programmes to prepare him for the outside world – one of which is a restorative justice programme that will see Pistorius meet with the parents of the woman he murdered.
Here’s a look at his journey from fame to fallen hero, and soon, a free man once more.
History made
He competed in the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, winning a gold medal in the 200-metre race for amputee athletes, and bronze in the 100-metre. In 2008, at the Paralympics in China, he won gold in the 100-, 200- and 400-metre events. But it was his historic appearance at the London Olympics in 2012 that made him a household name across the world when he became the first amputee to compete in the Olympics.
He made it to the semi-finals of the 400-metre race and, although he finished in last place and did not make it to the finals, it was a moment when time stood still as Pistorius, known as the “Blade Runner”, ran in the historic event. His legs were amputated below the knee as an infant after doctors advised his parents to undergo the procedure as he was born without a fibula in both legs. When he races, he uses carbon fibre prosthetics and it was those “blades” that earned him his nickname.
Love-struck