Oscar Pistorius is blocking out the London Olympics and putting all his energy toward making the 400 meters qualification time, the South African runner who uses artificial limbs said Friday.
Along with sprinter Usain Bolt, Pistorius is one of the most tantalizing Olympic plots as the world waits to see if he improve upon his eighth-placed finish at last year's world championships in Daegu, South Korea.
"I've given very little thought to London. You have to focus on what's going to get you to those goals," Pistorius said at the Global Sports Forum in Barcelona.
"I still need to get the qualification time, so I don't want any distractions," said Pistorius, who has the nickname Blade Runner due to the futuristic construction of his prosthetic legs.
The so-called "A" qualification time for London is 45.30, theoretically well within the sights of Pistorius, who has a personal best of 45.07.
He is training in South Africa before the outdoor season begins in May, hoping to arrive better prepared than for Daegu, when he met the qualification time at the last possible opportunity at a meet in Italy.
Pistorius began competing in international able-bodied competition in 2007, and a year later won a battle in the Court of Arbitration for Sport against the International Athletics Assocations Federation, which claimed his two prosthetic legs gave him an advantage.
