ATHLETICS/Double amputee's Olympic aim: A double amputee, due to a rare disease at birth that left him without bones below the knee, Oscar Pistorius has able-bodied athletes in his sights in the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008. Pistorius is on the verge of extending the limits of what disabled athletes can achieve. A professional attitude to sport and the development of high-tech prosthetics have allowed progress to rocket forward over the past eight years.

The teenager from Johannesburg won the gold medal in the 200 metres and the bronze medal in the 100 metres in the last Paralympic Games in Athens. He set world records in both events with very little previous experience in running sprints.

He was the only double amputee athlete in both races and finished the 200m in 21.97 seconds, which was faster than the winning time in the able-bodied women's 200m in the Olympics Games that had been held on the same track two weeks previously.

He ran the 100m in 11.16 seconds, the best-ever time by a double-amputee.

Pushing the barriers, Pistorius has his eyes set on running against the able-bodied men in Beijing over 400m. He has since reduced his 200m time to 21.50 seconds and has regularly competed against and beaten able-bodied athletes.

Pistorius generates his speed with his powerful upper legs, which drive and control his "Flex Foot Cheetah" racing blades. He is still focusing on the 100m and 200m, but believes his best chance of a ticket to the able-bodied Olympics in Beijing will be in the 400m event, which he finished in 47.43 seconds in his first official race at the end of last year.

His 100m times are standing still but his speed over 200m and 400m are getting better.

The 400m qualifying time in South Africa for the last Olympics was 44.50 seconds.

The current Irish record held by Paul McKee is 45.58 seconds.