Who is Oscar Pistorius? The amputee, Olympic runner, and convicted murderer will be released from prison in January.

He was born without fibula bones in either of his lower legs — both were amputated below the knee before he was a year old, according to Britannica.

In spite of his amputations, Pistorius began playing sports as a child. After beginning track in the early 2000s, he got his first carbon-fiber prosthetic legs, per Britannica.

At the time, he was only 17 years old.

Pistorius wasn't satisfied, though — he wanted to compete against able-bodied athletes.

Though he competed at an international competition against able-bodied runners in 2007, in 2008, the World Athletics governing body said he could not compete in the Olympic Games in Beijing, according to the New York Times.

In doing so, he became the first-ever double amputee to compete in the Games and reach the semifinals, per the Times.

He didn't win any medals, but gained popularity worldwide nonetheless.

In 2012, Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland, granted him an honorary doctorate for his athletic success, per the Independent.

The University later rescinded the honor after Pistorius's guilty verdict in 2014, according to the Herald.

Pistorius killed Steenkamp, who was a law graduate, model, and TV presenter, on February 14, 2013.

Pistorius shot Steenkamp four times through his own home's bathroom door.

He testified that he thought his girlfriend was an intruder, while prosecutors said he had killed her after an argument.

The charge is comparable to a manslaughter conviction, according to NPR.

After being convicted of murder, Pistorius was sentenced to six years in prison.

After the sentence increase, Steenkamp's family expressed their agreement with the court's decision.

"This is an emotional thing for them," said family spokesperson Tania Koen to Reuters in 2017. "They just feel that their trust in the justice system has been confirmed this morning."

In 2014, Cathal Kelly wrote that the reason could lie in fear of home security risks.

Kelly speculated that because some of the population could relate to the fear of a home invader, they might empathize with Pistorius more.

Reeva's mother, June Steenkamp, said Reeva told her they were fighting a lot.

"She'd only known him a short time and was beginning to think they were incompatible, and I think that night she was going to leave," she said to the Guardian in 2014. "This is not the whole story. I just wish he could have stood up and said exactly what happened."

A friend of Steenkamp's also said Reeva had texted about being scared of Pistorius at times.

He served about half of his 15-year sentence. As a condition of his parole, he must maintain conditions like continuing anger management therapy, per Reuters.

June Steenkamp said in a victim impact statement written before Friday that she would not attend the parole hearing because she could not "muster the energy to face him again at this stage," per NBC.

"My dearest child screamed for her life; loud enough for the neighbors to hear her," she wrote in the statement, per NBC. "I do not know what gave rise to his choice to shoot through a closed door at somebody with hollow-point ammunition when I believe, he knew it was Reeva."