Whether or not he is convicted of murdering his girlfriend on Valentine’s Day, Oscar Pistorius likely will be remembered more for his causing her death than for his breakthrough as a disabled athlete participating in the Olympics.

The “Blade Runner,” who ran on carbon-fiber prostheses after being born without fibulas, was the feel-good story of the London Games. Not only did Pistorius race in the 400 meters, a particularly competitive event, he beat a Russian, a Jamaican, and a Ukrainian to reach the semifinals and was tapped to run a leg on the South African relay.