Double amputee track sensation Oscar Pistorius has taken a step closer to taking part in the London Olympics next year after clocking a qualifying time of 45.07 seconds for the 400 metres.

The South African known as the “Blade Runner”, who runs with carbon fibre prosthetic running blades, finished clear of the field in Lignano, Italy, late Tuesday as he smashed his personal best of 45.61.

Importantly, he dipped under the crucial 45.25 qualifying mark, meaning the 24-year-old four-time Paralympic gold medallist will become the first amputee sprinter to compete at the World Championships which get under way in Daegu, South Korea, on August 27.

Pistorius’s previous personal best of 45.61 seconds was inside the ‘B’ standard set by the IAAF for the event but meant he was unlikely to make the South African team.

Every national federation can select three athletes for the world championships or Olympics, providing they meet the ‘A’ standard, with only one allowed if they only meet the ‘B’ standard.