DOUBLE-AMPUTEE SPRINTER Oscar Pistorius’s historic appearance at the IAAF World Championships ended in disappointment this afternoon as the South African finished last in his 400m semi-final.
Pistorius, 24, was controversially allowed to compete at the championships using his carbon-fibre prosthetics despite the opposition of some who felt that the ‘blades’ gave him an unfair advantage.
However, after qualifying for the semi-finals in 45.39 seconds yesterday, Pistorius was not at his best this afternoon, finishing the third semi-final in eighth place with a time of 46.19.
That time was more than a full second slower than his personal best over the distance, the 45.07 which he ran at Lignano Sabbiadoro in Italy last month.
Pistorius’s heat was won by Jermaine Gonzalez of Jamaica (44.99), while America’s LeShawn Merritt (44.76) and Kirani James (45.20) of Grenada also qualified for tomorrow’s final as winners of their respective semis.
