South African runner Oscar Pistorious is entering his fifth day in jail after allegedly murdering his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Police are investigating damage to her skull and friends of Pistorious say he frantically called them and admitted to shooting Steenkamp. NBC's Michelle Kosinski reports
By Alastair Jamieson, Staff writer, NBC News
Sponsors are standing by "Blade Runner" Oscar Pistorius, the Olympic and Paralympic star accused of murdering his model girlfriend, his agent said Monday.
"All sponsors are still on board, and they have given us their commitment towards Oscar, based on the relationships that they have formed with him over the past years," said Peet van Zyl, who represents the double-amputee. "They are quite happy to allow the legal process to take its course before they make any other further and formal announcements on it."
His sponsors include Nike and Oakley, neither of which was immediately available for comment when contacted by The Associated Press.
Dion Chang / AP
This photo taken through a car window shows workers taking down a billboard of Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius endorsing a product in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Thursday.
The 26-year-old sprinter is due to appear in a South African court on Tuesday, where he will seek bail. He strongly denied charges that he murdered model and law graduate Reena Steenkamp, 29, at his home near Pretoria early on Valentine?s Day.
Despite the bail hearing, all his upcoming races have been canceled, van Zyl confirmed.
Steenkamp died from gunshot wounds, according to police. Her funeral is due to take place Tuesday.
Karyn Maughan, legal correspondent for South Africa news channel ENCA, told NBC's TODAY that the sprinter would need to convince the court that her death was an accident.
?If he can?t prove that her death was unintentional then it is unlikely he will get bail and he also faces a life sentenced in jail,? she said.
?He must try to convince the court he shot her in confusion, thinking she was an intruder. His difficulty is that multiple credible witness accounts suggest there were noises that sounded like an argument coming from the house before the shooting.?
According to newspaper reports Sunday, two friends claimed?the sprinter?called them in a panic after the shooting, telling them he had shot Steenkamp in a "terrible accident."
Pistorius? uncle, Arnold,?on Saturday said the Paralympian was ?numb with shock, as well as grief.?
Karyn Maughan, senior legal reporter for eNCA news in South Africa, tells TODAY's Savannah Guthrie that Olympian Oscar Pistorius will have difficulty proving he didn't purposely shoot his girlfriend, and she explains that the Olympic runner kept a cricket bat next to his bed in fear of being attacked.
Related:
Prosecutor: 'Blade Runner' committed 'premeditated' murder of girlfriend
Reeva Steenkamp was model, budding TV star
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