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Showing him smiling in the spring sunshine, these are the first pictures of Oscar Pistorius since his release from jail for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

The disgraced former Paralympian, 37, was seen for the first time after serving seven years behind bars – as he reported to the parole office in Pretoria.

Although Pistorius, known as 'The Blade Runner' because of his prosthetic legs, appeared happy as he walked, his years in jail have clearly taken their toll on the athlete.

His slender frame suggests he has shed some of the weight he reportedly put on while in prison to the extent that his prosthetic legs no longer fit him. 

Now his hair is grey and thinning, and he is also believed to have become a chain smoker in prison.

It was reported in January that Pistorius was concerned about his muscular decline  due to lack of daily running while imprisoned. 

However, these pictures show he still has an athletic build. 

He killed Reeva, 29, on Valentine's Day 2013, shooting her through the locked door of their bathroom and later claiming he had thought she was an intruder. 

Since his release, the star has remained holed up in his uncle's £2million luxury mansion in Waterkloof, Pretoria, after being warned by parole officers not to be photographed.

The gun-fanatic has been allowed out on parole until 2029 and must adhere to a number of conditions set down by Atteridgeville Correction Services officials.

He has to undergo a course of 'anger management' to help him cope with his fierce temper which prosecutors said led him to kill Reeva.

The former athlete can no longer be the party animal that he was before he gunned down Reeva in his apartment on February 14, 2013.

He is barred from drinking alcohol and handling any weapons and must inform his parole officers of his whereabouts and remain at his uncle Arnold's home during set hours.

Pistorius has also been banned from giving media interviews, which will came as a further blow as major US talk shows were hoping to line him up as a star guest.

He remains under house arrest at his uncle's home – and is said to pray most of the day in between playing video games and greeting friends and family.

He has the use of a swimming pool, gym and games room and when he dines with his uncle and aunt they hold hands and the devout Christians pray before eating.

Uncle Arnold has been a quasi-father figure to Pistorius since his youth, having taken responsibility for him and siblings Aimee and Carl in the wake of the death of his mother Sheila when he was just 15. 

Sources said Pistorius rarely ventures out and prefers friends to visit as he is petrified Johannesburg's underworld figures will take revenge on him.

He has done some volutary work at a nearby church. One parishioner told the New York Post: 'He's not friendly, not outgoing. I don't know if I've ever seen him crack a smile. He's just a shadow of what he once was.'

Since his first trial in 2014, when Pistorius was found guilty of culpable homicide - later overturned in favour of murder - after shooting and killing Steenkamp through a locked bathroom door at his Pretoria home, the former athlete has leaned heavily on his faith. He often brought a rosary to court, and was pictured reading 'Breakthrough Prayer: The Power of Connecting with the Heart of God' by Jim Cymbal during breaks.