(ATR) South African police said testosterone and needles were allegedly found in the home of track star Oscar Pistorius, but are now backtracking.
Pistorius is in the second day of his bail hearing in a Pretoria court. Prosecutors allege that Pistorius, 26, shot his girlfriend of four months, Reeva Steenkamp, four times behind a closed bathroom door on Feb. 14 in an act of pre-meditated murder.His lawyers denied the allegations on Tuesday.
According to media reports, the hearing resembled a trial, with prosecutors presenting detailed evidence of the night of the attack, including a report that testosterone was found during a search of his house.
Testosterone is a banned substance, but Pistorius' lawyer said in court the substance found was a natural supplement and not banned by anti-doping regulations. And by the close of testimony Wednesday police indicated that their testosterone claim was not a certainty.
Craig Spence, a spokesperson for the International Paralympic Committee, expressed confidence in the anti-doping measures of the IPC. Pistorius is easily the most famous Paralympian with six golds and eight total medals, three of them from London 2012.
"During his Paralympic career Oscar has been tested 10 times since 2006, most recently twice in London," Spence wrote in an email, saying all were found to be negative.
Unlike the IOC, the IPC does not store samples of its athletes for future testing. However, the IOC tells ATR it did not test Pistorius in London. Its procedures test the top five finishers in each competition, plus two randomly selected competitors. Pistorius finished 23rd in the 400m and 8th in the 4x400m relay.
The final day of the bail hearing is scheduled for Thursday. Pistorius's lawyers claim the sprinter is not a flight risk, while the judge hearing the case said earlier in the week that bail would be difficult due to the charges of pre-meditated murder.
Written by Ed Hula III
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