Pistorius wants to train while on bail
2013-02-25 20:34
Johannesburg - Oscar Pistorius on Monday informed authorities
that he wants to resume athletic training while on bail for the murder case
against him, a government official said.
A spokesperson for the Olympic runner, however, denied
that he was making immediate plans to return to the track while awaiting trial
for the 14 February shooting death of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.
"Absolutely not," said spokesperson Janine
Hills. "He is currently in mourning and his focus is not on his
sports."
The double-amputee Paralympian discussed bail terms with
his probation officer and a correctional official at the Pretoria Magistrate's
Court, Hills said.
The guidelines will determine his daily routine until his
next court appearance on 4 June.
"It's his wish to continue to practice," James
Smalberger, chief deputy commissioner of the department of correctional
services, said in a telephone interview with AP.
Smalberger said the issue came up because authorities
need to know his movements whenever he leaves the home where he is staying.
The timing of any resumption of training was uncertain.
Pistorius's long-time coach, Ampie Louw, declined to
comment on any training plans for the runner, referring questions to a spokesperson
for the athlete's family.
Louw had said when the runner was in detention that he
wanted to put him back into training in the event that he was granted bail.
But he had also said Pistorius could be
"heartbroken" and unwilling to immediately run again.
Pistorius, who was released on bail on Friday, is staying
at the house of his uncle, Arnold, in Waterkloof in Pretoria.
He faces life imprisonment if convicted.
Pistorius is charged with premeditated murder in the
killing of Steenkamp, in the early hours of Valentine's Day.
Prosecutors say the pair had an argument before Steenkamp
was killed; Pistorius says he mistook her for an intruder and shot her accidentally.
Training
Smalberger said officials will visit Pistorius at his
uncle's home at least four times a month, and that the runner indicated his
interest in training again.
More planning must occur before the start of any
training.
"We want a training programme from his coach so that
we have backup for his movements," Smalberger said.
"He's not under house arrest, but his movements need
to be known to us so that we don't pitch there and he's not there," he
said.
"We agree on 'free time' normally during the course
of the day, and in the evening we expect him to be home."
Pistorius's 2013 season had been geared towards the 10
-18 August World Championships in Moscow, where the South African 4 x 400 relay
team will be trying for another medal to add to the silver it won at the 2011
edition.
Chief Magistrate Desmond Nair had set bail at R1m.
The 26-year-old track star was also ordered to hand over
his passports, turn in any guns he owns and keep away from his upscale home in
a gated community in Pretoria, the scene of the crime.
He cannot leave the district of Pretoria without his
probation officer's permission and is not allowed to consume drugs or alcohol,
the magistrate said.
Visit News24's Oscar Pistorius Special Report.
- AP