BT sticks by Oscar Pistorius for now
BT is sticking by brand ambassador Oscar Pistorius for the moment despite the South African Paralympic athlete being charged with murder.
Pistorius is currently in custody. South African news sources report his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp was shot dead at their home in Pretoria.
The 26-year-old athlete, nicknamed Blade Runner for his racing prosthetics, has proven popular with sponsors such as BT, Nike and Oakley and was one of the faces of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, becoming the first double amputee to run in the Olympics and winning two Paralympic golds.
A spokeswoman for BT, which featured the athlete prominently in its Games marketing activity last year, told Marketing Week Pistorius “is still a BT ambassador”. A written statement adds: “We are shocked by this terrible, tragic news. We await the outcome of the South African police investigation.”
Nike declined to comment. A report on the Daily Telegraph includes a link to tweet that claims Pistorius’ official website has been updated to remove a Nike ad that read: “I am the bullet in the chamber”. A request for comment from Oakley was not returned before this article was published.
