Oscar Pistorius

The sponsors that helped make Oscar Pistorius the highest-profile and highest-paid Paralympic athlete in the world are having to rethink their commitment to the sportsman after he was charged with murder Thursday. The disabled athlete, whose performances at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games made a national hero in South Africa, had links with Nike, sunglass manufacturer Oakley, perfume maker Thierry Mugler and running blade manufacturer Ossur. In total, his sponsorship deals were estimated to be worth about $4.7 million.

The allegation that Oscar Pistorius killed his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkam, should have been the important part of The Post's Feb. 15 front-page article " A star Paralympian's sudden descent ," but unfortunately the story quickly turned into an analysis of sports culture. It was offensive that an athlete accused of murder would be likened to sports figures such as Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong. Woods and Armstrong made mistakes, but putting them in the same category as an alleged killer is ridiculous.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Oscar Pistorius, the South African track star who made history by becoming the first disabled athlete to compete at the Olympics, has been charged with murder after a women believed to be his girlfriend was found dead at his home with gunshot wounds. Police said they were called to Pistorius's house in Pretoria at about 4 a.m. Thursday morning where they discovered a 30-year-old woman who was already dead. Under South African law, Pistorius — nicknamed the "Blade Runner" — will not be formally...

He is 74 now, almost 50 summers from when he stunned the Tokyo Olympics by rocketing past the greatest 10,000-meter runners in the world in the final 100 meters for the gold medal — a performance ranked by Runner's World magazine as the second-greatest Olympic moment. "You still look fast," President Obama quipped to a smiling Billy Mills when they met Friday morning. I went to the White House partly to see Mills receive the nation's second-highest civilian honor — the ...

There is no artificial enhancer that can give a man without legs the will to run in the Olympics. Oscar Pistorius's prosthetic calves are hardly his greatest advantage. You can't manufacture his brand of emotional gasoline, or build aspiration out of carbon fiber, or put it in his blood with EPO, either. The substance he runs on is called the athletic heart, and there is no external way of acquiring it, and it's why our fretting over so-called "enhancement" is misguided. The curl-tipped carbon blades on which Pistorius ...

At first he was barred from competing in able-bodied events, such as the Olympics . Then South African double amputee Oscar Pistorius struggled to make the qualifying time for the Summer Games. But Pistorius, known as the Blade Runner for his carbon fiber prosthetic legs , finally earned his place in London this summer, making him the first amputee to compete in track and field at an Olympics. Pistorius has no chance to win the gold, but some say he's already...

LONDON — Before another scientific journal, retired sprinter Michael Johnson's ego or track's stopwatch police ruin one of the great stories of these Olympic Games, let's crystallize the emotions of Olympic Stadium on Saturday, about 10:45 a.m., when a man with no legs below his knees began blazing around the track. The crowd of 80,000 roared because they felt happy for Oscar Pistorius , not sorry for him. They rose from their seats in awe, not uncomfortable...

He is 74 now, almost 50 summers from when he stunned the Tokyo Olympics by rocketing past the greatest 10,000-meter runners in the world in the final 100 meters for the gold medal — a performance ranked by Runner's World magazine as the second-greatest Olympic moment. "You still look fast," President Obama quipped to a smiling Billy Mills when they met Friday morning. I went to the White House partly to see Mills receive the nation's second-highest civilian honor —...

Jeremy Wariner was the best 400-meter runner in the world before 2008 , a virtually unbeatable champion from the United States. Oscar Pistorius was an inspirational speedster known as the Blade Runner, a South African with two prosthetic legs and Olympic hopes. The summer of 2008, however, offered crushing disappointment for both. Wariner missed the Olympic gold in Beijing , ending a four-year victory streak in major championships and setting off a slide that continued to the...

The allegation that Oscar Pistorius killed his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkam, should have been the important part of The Post's Feb. 15 front-page article " A star Paralympian's sudden descent ," but unfortunately the story quickly turned into an analysis of sports culture. It was offensive that an athlete accused of murder would be likened to sports figures such as Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong. Woods and Armstrong made mistakes, but putting them in the same category as an alleged killer is ridiculous.

Oscar Pistorius was 1 when his deformed legs were amputated, 6 when his parents divorced, 15 when his mother died. Life trained him to overcome adversity. And when he set world records running on artificial legs and competed in the London Olympics against able-bodied athletes, his story inspired the world. Pistorius was a hero to the disabled, and to a nation struggling to develop into a modern democracy after decades of violence and racial oppression under apartheid. On Thursday, he...

The sponsors that helped make Oscar Pistorius the highest-profile and highest-paid Paralympic athlete in the world are having to rethink their commitment to the sportsman after he was charged with murder Thursday. The disabled athlete, whose performances at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games made a national hero in South Africa, had links with Nike, sunglass manufacturer Oakley, perfume maker Thierry Mugler and running blade manufacturer Ossur. In total, his sponsorship deals were estimated to be worth...

CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Oscar Pistorius, the South African track star who made history by becoming the first disabled athlete to compete at the Olympics, has been charged with murder after a women believed to be his girlfriend was found dead at his home with gunshot wounds. Police said they were called to Pistorius's house in Pretoria at about 4 a.m. Thursday morning where they discovered a 30-year-old woman who was already dead. Under South African law, Pistorius — nicknamed the "Blade...

The Summer Paralympic Games in London ended Sunday. Almost 4,300 athletes from 166 countries competed in 20 sports. All of the athlete s competed despite their disabilities. Some were blind or had lost limbs. Others had diseases or condition that made the physical aspects of playing sports very difficult for them. Disabled athletes have competed in the Olympics. You may have read that Oscar Pistorius, the South African runner who had his legs amputated (or removed) when he was a baby, competed in...

YOU'D THINK A 17-day Olympiad couldn't stretch long enough to be habit-forming, but this week, the evenings seem awfully empty. Yes, the Paralympic Games begin Aug. 29 in London. Here in Washington we find ourselves in the unaccustomed midst of a pennant race and with a genuine quarterback possibly having taken the place of quarterback controversy. But can any of that fill the void? No more of Usain Bolt's shattering speed and outrageous preening. No more of Gabby Douglas's improbable leaps and entrancing smiles . No more...

LONDON — Before another scientific journal, retired sprinter Michael Johnson's ego or track's stopwatch police ruin one of the great stories of these Olympic Games, let's crystallize the emotions of Olympic Stadium on Saturday, about 10:45 a.m., when a man with no legs below his knees began blazing around the track. The crowd of 80,000 roared because they felt happy for Oscar Pistorius , not sorry for him. They rose from their seats in awe, not uncomfortable...

Double-amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius will not compete for South Africa at the Beijing Olympics after failing to make the roster for the 4x400-meter relay team. Pistorius, who recently won the right to compete against able-bodied athletes in an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, failed to meet the qualifying standard in the 400 meters. He had hoped to be chosen as an alternate for the relay, but his name was not on the roster announced yesterday. Athletics South Africa President Leonard Chuene said four other runners...

The Summer Paralympic Games in London ended Sunday. Almost 4,300 athletes from 166 countries competed in 20 sports. All of the athlete s competed despite their disabilities. Some were blind or had lost limbs. Others had diseases or condition that made the physical aspects of playing sports very difficult for them. Disabled athletes have competed in the Olympics. You may have read that Oscar Pistorius, the South African runner who had his legs amputated (or removed) when he was a baby, competed in the London Olympics.

So, kids, does your mom tell you to get up, get dressed and brush your teeth, and that she doesn't want to hear any complaining? Before you say you have the toughest mom in the world, think about what South African Olympic runner Oscar Pistorius says about his mom. Pistorius had to have part of both legs amputated (removed) when he was just a baby. But he says the way his mom raised him and his brother has helped him become an Olympic athlete. "My mother said to us in the morning: ‘Carl' —...

At first he was barred from competing in able-bodied events, such as the Olympics . Then South African double amputee Oscar Pistorius struggled to make the qualifying time for the Summer Games. But Pistorius, known as the Blade Runner for his carbon fiber prosthetic legs , finally earned his place in London this summer, making him the first amputee to compete in track and field at an Olympics. Pistorius has no chance to win the gold, but some say he's already claimed the...