• London Paralympics 2012

Team South Africa offer support to Pistorius

ESPN staff
September 3, 2012
Oscar Pistorius failed to defend his T44 200m title after he was beaten by Alan Oliveira © PA Photos
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Oscar Pistorius has received the backing of the South African team after his controversial outburst following his T44 200m defeat on Sunday.

The South African raised concerns over the length of the prosthetic blades worn by some of his rivals after Brazil's Alan Oliveira launched a late charge to snatch gold in a time of 21.45s.

Pistorius, nicknamed 'Blade Runner', has since apologised for the timing of his comments, although he did not retract the allegations he made.

The South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) has welcomed Pistorius' apology and vowed to represent him if he chooses to pursue his grievances with the International Paralympic Committee.

"We note and welcome Oscar's apology for anything said in haste, and we obviously fully understand that he was emotionally upset immediately after such an important event here in London," SASCOC chief executive Tubby Reddy said.

"We again congratulate Oscar on winning his silver medal on Sunday. As always we are fully supportive of all our athletes and will engage through the official channels from the National Paralympic Committee in South Africa to the International Paralympic Committee on any concerns that Oscar may have.

"We are also happy to see that Oscar is moving on and focusing on the other events that he is yet to run here in London."

The IPC said on Monday that Pistorius' allegations were unfounded, but it is willing to discuss the matter further with him.

"He wanted to voice his concerns and we listened to those concerns," IPC spokesman, Craig Spence said. "The IPC will meet with Oscar at a later date to discuss his concerns, once the emotion is out of the way."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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