It has been suggested that the athlete could be out of prison in as little as two years, if the state doesn't appeal successfully, after being handed a six-year sentence. This is because he has already served time in prison, undertaken many of the rehabilitation courses he is likely to be offered this time round, and because he could be deemed eligible for correctional supervision by the prison authorities, which would him released early, and electronically tagged.

When he was sentenced for manslaughter in October 2014, he was handed five years' imprisonment. After just one sixth of that sentence, 10 months, he was considered for release under correctional supervision by the prison authorities and released into house arrest at his uncle's palatial mansion two months later. Having been sentenced to return to prison however, the athlete is now expected to be taken from court to Kgosi Mampuru II on the outskirts of Pretoria.

Under prison regulations, he will be fingerprinted before he leaves the court as prisoners have been known to swap identities in the cells. On arrival at the prison, an austere structure ringed by curved and electrified fences and cameras which sits on one of the main roads in to Pretoria, he will be strip-searched, his personal possessions taken and he will be issued with an orange jumpsuit.

He is expected to be held, as before, in a single cell in the hospital wing of the prison. There are just six cells in the section, which is guarded by a special task force of prison officers. The athlete's psychologist claimed during the sentencing proceedings however that Pistorius was assaulted by another prisoner who managed to get into the high security wing, leaving him with two black eyes. The state suggested the athlete lied about the incident since he did not report it to the authorities.