South African runner Oscar Pistorius was a global sports superstar, known around the world as the “Blade Runner” for the futuristic prosthetic legs he wore while competing in international track and field events.
But, on February 14, 2013, the professional sprinter’s life changed when he shot and killed his 29-year-old girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his home in Pretoria, South Africa.
Pistorius claimed he killed Steenkamp by mistake, after he thought he heard an intruder enter his bathroom in the middle of the night. Prosecutors, however, alleged Pistorius fatally shot Steenkamp after an argument. He was ultimately convicted of murder and sentenced to prison. Here’s what to know about Pistorius and where he is today.
Who is Oscar Pistorius?
Before his trial and conviction, Pistorius was an international sports celebrity famous for wearing curved, carbon-fiber “blade” prosthetics on both legs when he ran. He was born with a birth defect known as fibular hemimelia, which meant he was missing the fibula bones in both of his calves. Following the advice of doctors, his parents decided to have his legs amputated below the knees when he was 11 months old. As a toddler, he learned to walk on fiberglass pegs.
Throughout his childhood and adolescence, Pistorius played various sports, including water polo, tennis and Olympic wrestling. After he injured his knee playing rugby, Pistorius took up running as a form of rehab.
He quickly excelled at the sport. Pistorius was just 17 when he competed in his first Paralympic Games in Athens, winning gold in the 200-meter event and bronze in the 100-meter race. In 2012, Pistorius made history as the first double amputee to compete in the Olympics when he ran at the Summer Games in London.
Controversy swirled over whether his prosthetics gave him an unfair advantage over other competitors. Pistorius did not earn a medal in London, but his story inspired many people around the globe—including fellow athletes.
“If something like that happens to you and you lose both legs, some people would give up,” said Bryshon Nellum, an American sprinter, after Pistorius made his Olympic debut. “For him to continue to run, it’s unbelievable. It’s amazing.”
What Crime Did Oscar Pistorius Commit?
Six months after the London Games, in the early morning hours of Valentine’s Day in 2013, Pistorius fired four shots from a licensed 9mm pistol through the locked door of a toilet cubicle inside a bathroom at his home. Steenkamp, his girlfriend, was inside and died from the gunshot wounds almost instantly. Three hollow-point expanding bullets struck Steenkamp, a South African model and paralegal—one in her right hip, another in her right arm and one in her head.
Pistorius did not dispute that he shot and killed Steenkamp. But he and prosecutors disagreed on exactly what happened that night.
Pistorius claimed the shooting was a tragic accident. At his 2014 trial, he said he was in bed sleeping next to Steenkamp when he heard the sound of an intruder opening a window in the bathroom. Without pausing to put on his prosthetic legs, he said he got out of bed and grabbed a gun.
Pistorius testified in the trial that when he entered the bathroom, he heard another noise that sounded like someone opening the door to the toilet cubicle. Pistorius fired four shots, went back to the bedroom to find Steenkamp, but realized she was missing. He said he returned to the bathroom and, after using a cricket bat to punch a hole in the locked door so he could open it, he said he found Steenkamp’s bloody body.
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel, however, painted a very different story. He argued at trial that Steenkamp had taken refuge inside the toilet cubicle after the couple got into an argument, and that Pistorius intended to kill her.
“You will blame anybody but yourself,” Nel said to Pistorius during the 2014 trial. “You are lying. You just refuse to take responsibility for anything.”
Judge Thokozile Masipa acquitted Pistorius of premeditated murder, but found him guilty of culpable homicide, an offense similar to manslaughter in the United States. She sentenced him to five years in prison.
But South African prosecutors appealed and, in December 2025, an appeals court ruled that Pistorius was guilty of murder. Masipa then sentenced Pistorius to six years in prison.
“He’s a fallen hero who has lost his career and is ruined financially,” Masipa said at the time. “The worst is that having taken the life of a fellow human being in the manner that he did, he cannot be at peace.”
Once again, prosecutors appealed, describing the sentence as “shockingly too lenient.”
In November 2017, an appeals court increased Pistorius’ sentence to 15 years—more than double the lower court’s sentence. He was given credit for the time he had already served, which brought the time down to 13 years and five months.
Where is Oscar Pistorius Now?
In January 2024, Pistorius was released on parole from the Atteridgeville Correctional Centre, where he served his sentence.
In South Africa, parolees do not wear monitoring devices. But officials say they are watching Pistorius closely. Until his sentence expires in 2029, Pistorius is required to remain in the Pretoria region, unless he gets permission from authorities to leave. He must perform community service and complete programs on anger management and violence against women. He is not allowed to drink alcohol, nor speak with the media.
Since his release, Pistorius has been keeping a low profile. He is living with his uncle, Arnold Pistorius, in Waterkloof, a suburb of Pretoria.
Steenkamp’s family, meanwhile, is still grappling with her violent death. Her father, Barry, died at age 80 in September 2023. But her mother, June, continues to speak out against Pistorius—though she said in a victim impact statement that she has forgiven him.
“There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back, and no amount of time served will bring Reeva back,” June Steenkamp said in a January 2024 statement on behalf of the family after Pistorius was released on parole. “We, who remain behind, are the ones serving a life sentence.”
Related Features:
The Most Memorable Moments from O.J. Simpson’s Murder Trial
Marvin Gaye: The Motown Legend Who Was Murdered by His Father
Aaron Hernandez: Was CTE to Blame for the Football Star’s Shocking Downfall?
