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London - London Olympics chief Sebastian Coe has welcomed Oscar Pistorius's qualification for the 2012 Games, saying the double amputee's participation will be a "fascinating" prospect.
South African track star Pistorius, who runs with carbon fibre prosthetic running blades, thrust himself into contention for the Olympics after clocking a qualifying time of 45.07 seconds for the 400m on Tuesday.
The 24-year-old four-time Paralympic gold medallist will now become the first amputee sprinter to compete at the World Championships which get under way in Daegu, South Korea, on August 27.
London 2012 chairperson Coe, who will attend the championships in Daegu, said he is looking forward to seeing Pistorius run in next year's Olympics.
"He's now eligible to compete in the Olympic Games in the summer and I'm sure he will, and he's eligible to compete in Daegu in a few weeks time. It will be fascinating," Coe said.
Pistorius, who had both legs amputated below the knee when he was 11-months-old because of a congenital condition that meant he was born without fibulae - lower leg bones, failed to qualify for the 400m at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
He had been given the green light to attempt to qualify for the Beijing Games after the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned a ruling by the International Association of Athletics Federations that his blades gave him an unfair advantage.
Coe said any questions about Pistorius's right to compete had now been resolved.
"We worked through that process of understanding him as a competitor, understanding the nature of melding within our championships the potential inclusion of athletes with disability," Coe explained.
"That has now been resolved and I welcome Oscar to London, as I will to Daegu in a few weeks time."
South African track star Pistorius, who runs with carbon fibre prosthetic running blades, thrust himself into contention for the Olympics after clocking a qualifying time of 45.07 seconds for the 400m on Tuesday.
The 24-year-old four-time Paralympic gold medallist will now become the first amputee sprinter to compete at the World Championships which get under way in Daegu, South Korea, on August 27.
London 2012 chairperson Coe, who will attend the championships in Daegu, said he is looking forward to seeing Pistorius run in next year's Olympics.
"He's now eligible to compete in the Olympic Games in the summer and I'm sure he will, and he's eligible to compete in Daegu in a few weeks time. It will be fascinating," Coe said.
Pistorius, who had both legs amputated below the knee when he was 11-months-old because of a congenital condition that meant he was born without fibulae - lower leg bones, failed to qualify for the 400m at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
He had been given the green light to attempt to qualify for the Beijing Games after the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned a ruling by the International Association of Athletics Federations that his blades gave him an unfair advantage.
Coe said any questions about Pistorius's right to compete had now been resolved.
"We worked through that process of understanding him as a competitor, understanding the nature of melding within our championships the potential inclusion of athletes with disability," Coe explained.
"That has now been resolved and I welcome Oscar to London, as I will to Daegu in a few weeks time."
