Oscar Pistorius calls in U.S. forensics experts ahead of murder trial

Oscar Pistorius has enlisted the help of U.S. forensics investigators ahead of his murder trial, set for March of next year.

The double-amputee Olympic and Paralympic athlete, known as "Blade Runner" for the prostheses he wears to run, is charged with murdering his girlfriend, model and reality television star REeva Steenkamp in his Pretoria, South Africa home.

Pistorius, currently free on 1 million rand, (U.S.$100,000) bail, says he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder when he fatally shot her.

“I can confirm that a team of forensic specialists from the United States is in the country at the moment working with Oscar’s defense team,” spokeswoman Anneliese Burgess said from South Africa. "We don’t want to go into any further details except that its very standard practice to work with specialists in various fields in preparation for any trial."

Born without fibulas and undergoing amputation at 11 months old, Pistorius won six Paralympic gold medals before becoming the first amputee runner to compete in an Olympic Games. Since his arrest, sponsors including Nike and Oakley have ended deals with Pistorius.