Pistorius Qualifies for World Championships

20 Jul 2011 By IPC

Double-amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius of South Africa ran a career-best time in the 400m on Tuesday evening to qualify for next month’s World Championships in Daegu, South Korea.

He clocked a time of 45.07 seconds at a meet in Lignano, Italy, which bettered the “A” qualifying time of 45.25 and his previous best mark of 45.61.

Pistorius will be the first-ever amputee to compete against able-body athletes at a major international championship event. The competition will begin on 27 August and run through to 4 September.

Meanwhile, another South African, Natalie Du Toit, placed 39th in the women’s 10km open water swim at the FINA World Championships in Shanghai, China.

The amputee swimmer – the first to compete in an able-bodied Olympics in 2008 in Beijing – finished the race in a time of 2:08:27.