The strong rejection by South African Olympic and Paralympics star Oscar Pistorius of the accusation that he murdered his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp means that he is going to fight in court what was thought to be an open and shut case. There is thus the possibility of another “trial of the century” like the one in which OJ Simpson, the American football star, was ultimately found innocent of murdering his wife. Prosecutors say they will argue that the history-making Olympic athlete had planned the killing of Steenkamp, thus pursuing a charge of premeditated murder. If convicted, the athlete could spend the rest of his life in prison. His defense is seeking a lesser charge, possibly culpable homicide, which is defined in South African law as unlawful, negligent killing. Though Pistorius has been charged with deliberate murder, not an inadvertent shooting, he is, of course, innocent until proven otherwise, but already the story has people reeling as a South African national hero and a global role model in overcoming adversity faces accusations that he intentionally pulled the trigger. Pistorius certainly has a galvanizing story to tell; a man who overcame tremendous odds after being born with no fibula bones in his lower legs, which were surgically removed below the knee when he was 11 months old. He made history last summer by becoming the first double-amputee track athlete to run in an Olympic Games. He did not win a medal but did make the semi-finals of the 400 meters and the final of the 4X400 relay. The debate about whether his carbon-fiber prosthetic blades gave him an unfair advantage over his rivals did not prevent him from becoming the world's most celebrated Paralympian, an international track star and one of the world's best known sportsmen. But the image of the man as amazing competitor but now possible murderer has jarred millions. And because of that sudden but seismic shift, the public is reminded yet again that it becomes risky to equate sporting accomplishment with heroism. We know now that Tiger Woods was not what he pretended to be. Nor were Lance Armstrong, Ben Johnson and Marion Jones. They were all heroes at one time. They were all trading lucratively on the public's perception of them when at the same time their behavior directly contradicted that image. When their new persona emerged, their transgressions as normal people surpassed their performance as athletes. The human failings that were exposed were simply too large to be erased by their physical achievements. The life of Pistorius is an inspiration; it shows us what we can achieve if we are determined and put our mind to it. If he is found guilty, the story will also show how in one mindless moment, all that he accomplished, the entire body of his work, went down the drain. It could be an astonishing fall from grace. From the height of his powers as one of the most famous figures in sports to humiliation and contrition. And one more example of how many supposed sports heroes are actually works of fiction.
