'Blade Runner' Pistorius rules out returning to the track this year to concentrate on his court case

Oscar Pistorius will not return to the track for the rest of the year so he can focus on his looming court case.Pistorius stands accused of premeditated murder after the death of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, who was shot dead on Valentine's Day at his Pretoria home.

The 'Blade Runner', who was released on bail in February, will be back in court on June 4 and is likely to stand trial before the end of 2013.

But the Paralympian’s coach Ampie Louw revealed Pistorius has turned down invitations to take part in major international athletic events and will stay away from the track.Louw said: 'We have decided as a team we are not talking [about] any training or athletics. 'We have postponed [races] for the whole year.'

You just have to feel sorry for Oscar.......

"Pistorius free to use his passport"

Murder accused paralympian Oscar Pistorius can travel again after the High Court in Pretoria set aside some of his bail conditions on appeal on Thursday.

"He will be allowed to use his passport to travel outside of the country," said Judge Bert Bam."I could find no reason why the appellant should be forbidden to leave the country to compete abroad," he said.

Pistorius was arrested on February 14 after his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp was shot dead in his Pretoria home. He did not attend the appeal proceedings.The conditions Bam set aside were:--

that he surrender his passport to the magistrate's office (3b);

that he refrain from applying for a passport or travel documents until the case against him is concluded (3c);

that he refrain from entering the international departure hall of any airport or the departure hall of any international destination (3d);

that he submit himself to the supervision of a probation officer or correctional officer (3h);

that he not be charged with an offence relating to violence against women while on bail (3i);

that he refrain from consuming alcohol or a banned substance (3j)

Oscar Pistorius friend says South African runner on verge of suicide

A friend of Oscar Pistorius has said the Paralympic star is "on the verge of suicide" following the incident last month in which he was charged with the premeditated murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.Mike Azzie, who Pistorius refers to as Uncle Mike, said the sportsman was a "broken man" after he was tasked with selling his racehorses to raise money to pay for spiralling legal fees.Speaking in a BBC3 documentary, Oscar Pistorius: What Really Happened? to be broadcast on Monday night, Azzie said Pistorius regularly talks about Steenkamp. "He just always seems to mention Reeva and to ask us to pray for her and her family," he added. "But most of all, you've got to understand that we are there for him and we will always be his friend. He has no confidence in his tone of voice and he is just a man that is almost like someone that is walking around in circles and doesn't know where he is going."I would say that, just speaking to him, that he is a broken man and that I would go as far to say that he would be on the verge of suicide. It really worries me.

"According to the documentary makers, Mentorn Media, police in Johannesburg said they have requested all records of phone calls and messages exchanged between Pistorius and Steenkamp on the day she was killed.Officers added they were also sifting through a "massive" number of texts on Steenkamp's phone, producers said.There are no plans for police to enter into a plea bargain with Pistorius' legal team for a lesser charge, the show's makers claimed.

Pistorius shot girlfriend through door – Prosecutor

Late Reeva and Pistorius

“Blade Runner” Oscar Pistorius put on his artificial legs and walked across his bedroom before firing four shots through a locked toilet door, killing his cowering girlfriend in cold blood, prosecutors said on Tuesday.

Reeva Steenkamp, a 30-year-old law graduate and model, died after being hit by three rounds from a 9-mm pistol, prosecutor Gerrie Nel said.

Pistorius, 26, wept uncontrollably in court as Nel outlined details of a shooting that has stunned South Africa and the millions around the world who saw the double amputee’s track glory as an inspiring tale of triumph over adversity.

Later, in a dramatic affidavit read out by defense lawyer Barry Roux, Pistorius said he had been “deeply in love” with Steenkamp, whom he had been dating since November, and had no intention of killing her.

Having had previous death threats and break-ins, Pistorius said he slept with a 9-mm pistol under his bed in his plush Pretoria home in the heart of a well-secured gated community.

He and Steenkamp went to sleep on Wednesday night – the eve of Valentine’s Day – some time after 10 p.m., he said.

However, in the middle of the night, he awoke in pitch darkness and thought an intruder had climbed through a window and entered the toilet, Pistorius said.

Without putting on his prosthetic legs – contrary to the prosecution’s version of events – he moved on his stumps into the bathroom adjoining his bedroom and noticed the closed toilet door. He did not realize Steenkamp was behind it, he said.

He shouted for the intruder to get out of his house then fired several shots into the door, before calling to Steenkamp to phone the police.

When she did not respond, he grabbed a cricket bat to beat down the bathroom door and found her slumped on the floor, he said.