Oscar Pistorius sentenced to 6 years in prison for murder of Reeva Steenkamp

South African Olympian Oscar Pistorius has been sentenced to 6 years in prison by a judge for the murder of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp, in 2013.

Pistorius had originally served 10 months of a previous sentence under the crime of culpable homicide, having shot Steenkamp through a door in their home in Pretoria.

Pistorius had originally served 10 months of a previous sentence

However, the court was ordered to resentence the paralympic athlete on the basis of the more serious crime of murder, but Pistorius will only serve one more year than his original sentence provided for.

There was little emotion from the Steenkamp family in the courtroom as Judge Masipa read the sentence, while Pistorius' sister left the court in tears.

It is not clear when the athlete will be available for parole again, but reports from South African media say that it could be as soon as 2 years.

The judge said there were a number of mitigating factors which caused her to deliver less than the 15-year minimum requested, including the fact that he was vulnerable while being on his stumps, he genuinely believed the person in the bathroom was an intruder, and that he took immediate attempts to help Steenkamp when he realised what happened.

The six-time Paralympic gold medallist made history by becoming the first amputee sprinter to compete at the Olympics, in 2012 in London, running on prosthetic "blades". He had his legs amputated below the knee as a baby.