- The first double amputee to compete at the Olympics was Oscar Pistorius, a gold medallist in the Paralympic Games.
- In 2013, Pistorius shot and killed Steenkamp, thinking she was an intruder.
- In 2016, he was sentenced to more than 13 years in jail.
The first double amputee to compete at the Olympics was Oscar Pistorius, a gold medallist in the Paralympic Games who used prosthetic legs made of carbon fiber. Additionally, it was he who was found guilty of shooting and killing his 29-year-old girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in his Pretoria home’s toilet.
After having both of his legs amputated below the knees before turning one year old, Pistorius was born without a fibula. He rose to international prominence in the early 2000s when he won the gold medal in the 200 meters at the Paralympic Games in Athens.
Oscar Pistorius
Because running against athletes with able bodies was prohibited by World Athletics, Pistorius was unable to compete in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Nevertheless, he excelled at the Paralympics, taking home gold in the 100, 200, and 400 meters.
He then set his sights on qualifying for the 2012 Olympics in London, where he made it to the semi-finals of the 400 meters and participated in the 4×400 meters relay. In 2013, Pistorius shot and killed Steenkamp, thinking she was an intruder.
He was first imprisoned for five years in 2014 for culpable homicide but was later found guilty of the more serious charge of murder following an appeal by prosecutors. In 2016, he was sentenced to more than 13 years in jail.
During a victim-offender discussion in 2022, Pistorius got to know Barry, Steenkamp’s father, as part of South Africa‘s restorative justice initiative. In 2023, Steenkamp’s father passed away. June, Pistorius’s mother, said she believed in his recovery but added said she had forgiven him “long ago” because she knew he would not live if he held onto his resentment.
