Paralympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius has been included among Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world.
Pistorius, 25, was the only South African named in the list for 2012.
On the Time website, sports columnist Sean Gregory wrote on Wednesday that the double amputee, a four-time Paralympic champion, had shown great character to compete against able-bodied athletes.
“Even when the running establishment Ä convinced his blades provided an advantage Ä tried to confine Pistorius to the Paralympics, he kept pushing his limits and the limits of the human body,” Gregory wrote.
“Now he's won the right to compete against the world's best. He is the definition of global inspiration.”
Pistorius won a battle against the International Association of Athletics Federations in May 2008 when the Court of Arbitration for Sport cleared him to compete in able-bodied championships.
He broke new ground in 2011 when he became the first amputee to win a track medal at the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea, as part of South Africa's 4x400 metres relay team which claimed the silver medal.
Pistorius has already dipped under the Olympic qualifying standard in the men's 400m sprint, after he clocked 45.20 seconds in Pretoria last month.
However, he must achieve the standard again at an international meeting to book his place in the SA team for the London Games. – Sapa