The 24-year-old South African double leg-amputee last month became the first Paralympian to win an able-bodied World Championship medal when he helped South Africa take silver in the 4x400 metres relay in Daegu, but even a feat of this magnitude does not leave him immune to scorn.

Pistorius has continuously received accusations that his prosthetic legs give him an unfair advantage over able-bodied athletes and he stormed out of a BBC Radio Four interview yesterday after interviewer Rob Bonnet described him as an "inconvenient embarrassment" to the athletics authorities.

"There will always be critics out there who are not happy about what I do but I have made peace with that," said Pistorius here in London at a press conference with Össur, who manufacture his prosthetic limbs.

"But for the five per cent of critics I have, 95 per cent of people out there are supporting me and cheering me on to do well.

"I've done everything in my power to show that I don't get an unfair advantage over able-bodied athletes.

"I'm a big believer in fairness and part of the reason I was so happy to do all the tests is for my own peace of mind and to prove that I don't get any unfair advantage.

"I have also not changed a single bolt on my legs since 2006 so it is clear that all the improvements in my performances are coming from me and not the legs.

"People out there may still want to insult me and criticise me but I've come to terms with that.

"I'm just happy that I can inspire a lot more people out there and that my performances can make people happy and show just what a person with disabilities can accomplish."


Pistorius continued that he has a fantastic relationship with the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) despite the fact the world governing body for athletics banned him from all their competitions in 2008 before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturned the decision later that year.

"People think there is a lot of bad blood between me and the IAAF because of what happened in 2008 with CAS but that is not the case at all," Pistorius explained.

"At the World Championships in Daegu, I had lunch with IAAF President Lamine Diack and we are very good friends.

"The IAAF has fully accepted me and what happened in 2008 only happened because they were looking out for the sport and trying to protect athletics.

"They received a lack of facts from which to make an informed decision and as soon as CAS overturned this, they were happy to let me compete.

"We are very close now and we always have been despite what people might think."

Pistorius added that he is still aiming to compete at the London 2012 Olympics next year with his dream closer than ever to becoming a reality.

"I want to compete in both [Paralympics and Olympics]," he said.

"I will try to run the 400m at the Olympics and I will be running the 100m, 200m and 400m in the Paralympics.

"I've got to run one more qualification time for the Olympics between January and June next year so I think it is very possible for me to make it to the event."

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