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| In this photo taken Friday, Feb. 22, 2013, Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius appears in court during his bail hearing in Pretoria, South Africa, for the shooting death of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. A spokeswoman for Oscar Pistorius says he has reported to authorities under the bail terms in the murder case against him in Preoria, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. |
JOHANNESBURG (AP) -- Oscar Pistorius on Monday informed South African authorities that he wants to resume athletic training while on bail for the murder case against him, a government official said.
A
spokeswoman for the Olympic runner, however, denied that he was making
immediate plans to return to the track while awaiting trial for the Feb.
14 shooting death of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.
"Absolutely not," said spokeswoman 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
in the capital, according to correctional officials. The guidelines will
determine his daily routine until his next court appearance on June 4.
"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 The Associated Press.
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'
longtime coach, Ampie Louw, declined to comment on any training plans
for the runner, referring questions to a spokeswoman 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 Friday, is staying at the house of his uncle,
Arnold, in the affluent suburb of 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.
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 program 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' 2013
season had been geared towards the Aug. 10-18 World Championships in
Moscow, where the South African 4x400 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 1 million rand ($113,000). 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.
