Pistorius was forced to settle with silver as Oliveira won gold in front of 80,000 spectators, and used his post-race interview to complain to the International Paralympic Committee about the length of some of the athletes’ blades despite his gold-winning competitor’s blades falling within the rules of the event.
He has since released a statement to the Press Association apologising for his comments, saying: “I would never want to detract from another athlete’s moment of triumph and I want to apologise for the timing of my comments after yesterday’s race.
“I do believe that there is an issue here and I welcome to opportunity to discuss with the IPC but I accept that raising these concerns immediately as I stepped off the track was wrong.”
Pistorius cannot alter the length of his blades if he wants to continue to compete in the able-boded competition but faces competition in the Paralympics from those with a height disadvantage through the length of their new blades.
The 200m was one of three titles Pistorius won in Beijing that he was hoping to defend.
Photo: Getty.