Italian sprinter Valentina Petrillo, made history as the first out transgender runner to compete in the Paralympic Games.
She advanced to the semifinal but Petrillo failed to qualify for the 400m T12 final. She she finished third in semifinal 2 despite running a personal best of 57.58 seconds, in a report by CNN.
Petrillo is scheduled to race in the women’s 200m T12 competition on Friday
Petrillo was 14-years-old when she was diagnosed with Stargardt disease, an inherited disorder that frequently causes vision loss. At the Paris 2024 Paralympics, she will run in both the 200-meter and 400-meter races under T12 classification. T12 events are track events that adjust for athletes with very low visual acuity.
In 2018, Petrillo publicly came out as transgender.
The following year, with the help and support of her now-ex-wife, she began transitioning.
Prior to beginning hormone replacement therapy in 2019, Petrillo’s had a decorated career as a sprinter that included 11 national championship titles in men’s sprint events. Since coming out as transgender, she has been determined to do what she describes as, “the most beautiful thing…” fulfilling her dream of running with women.
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Petrillo’s accomplishment comes after almost four years of uncertainty and a series of obstacles.
In 2020, despite meeting the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and World Para Athletics standards, she faced pushback from the Italian Federation for Paralympic and Experimental Sport (FISPES). It was not until the end of the 2020 season that FISPES changed its decision, allowing her to compete in women’s events.
With national championship titles in the women’s T12 200-meter and 400-meter sprints, Petrillo entered the previous Paralympic season as a strong contender for the Tokyo Paralympic Games.
However, in 2021, she was reclassified from T12 to T13.
Comparatively, T12 athletes have higher visual acuity than T11 athletes and T13 athletes have met the minimum visual acuity standards to maintain eligibility in IPC sports. The reclassification meant she was required to meet a faster qualifying standard. While she set a national record in the women’s 400-meter T13 class in April 2021, Petrillo ultimately placed 5th at the 2021 European Para Athletic Championships in June.
In the end, she was left off Italy’s roster for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics (the Games were held in August 2021 due to the global coronavirus pandemic). In a 2023 interview with BiDiMedia, Petrillo reflected on the moment, saying, “The result, while upsetting, only motivated me. From that day I immediately started to think about Paris and building what was possible.”
Petrillo’s challenges did not end there. In March 2023, she withdrew from the World Masters Indoor Athletic Championships in Poland due to anti-trans threats and concerns for her safety. Shortly after, World Athletics instituted its anti-trans policy preventing transgender and intersex women–like South African middle distance runner Caster Semenya or Jamaican hurdler CeCé Telfer–from competing in women’s events. World Athletics’ transgender ban has also caused harm to cisgender women, such as Algerian boxer Imane Khelif who won an Olympic gold medal in Paris amidst significant controversy.
Petrillo is well aware of the potential for controversy surrounding her selection. In an interview, she told The Advocate, “And the way I am, like all transgender people who do not feel they belong to their gender, should not be discriminated against in the same way that race, religion, or political ideology should not be discriminated against.” She continued, “And sport that imposes rules based on a binary way of thinking does not factor this in. It is sport that has to find a solution and excluding transgender athletes is clearly not that solution.”
Fortunately, the governing body of Para Athletics–World Para Athletics–has policies more aligned with the current International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee standards and guidelines. As a result, Petrillo is allowed to continue competing in women’s events. In 2023, she ended the outdoor para athletics season with bronze medals in the women’s 200-meter T12 and women’s 400-meter T12 races at the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships in Paris.
It is critical that the media, spectators, and advocates recognize that transgender people have always existed throughout history and across cultures. There is no evidence that transgender athletes have unfair advantages, or that they are dominating—or ever will dominate—sports. A recent study commissioned by the International Olympic Committee and carried out by the University of Brighton shows that athletes who are trans women are at a relative disadvantage in various key physical areas.
Last weekend, the Italian Paralympic Committee confirmed Petrillo’s selection to their Paralympic team. She will compete in the 200-meter and 400-meter races in the T12 classification. In an interview with BBC Sports, Petrillo said, “I have been waiting for this day for three years and in these past three years I have done everything possible to earn it… The historic value of being the first transgender woman to compete at the Paralympics is an important symbol of inclusion”
On September 2nd, Valentina Petrillo made history as the first out transgender runner to compete at the Paralympics, taking part in the women’s 400-meter T12. Last year, she had the 6th fastest time in the world in that event.
Such an achievement, which has been 50 years in the making for Petrillo, marks a critical step forward for LGBTQ–and specifically transgender–representation in sports. Fortunately for us, Petrillo is up to the task: “I want to become a symbol of a world that is rebelling. I believe that in the future we need examples like mine. I am convinced that it will lead to something,” she told Fanpage.it.
Petrillo advanced to the semifinal of the event after qualifying as one of the fastest runners-up with a time of 58.35 seconds.
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Previous reports that Petrillo was the first out transgender athlete to compete at the Paralympics were inaccurate, with the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) confirming to CNN that Dutch discus thrower, Ingrid van Kranen, was a transgender Paralympian when she competed at the Paralympics in Rio in 2016.
See when Petrillo competes in GLAAD’s LGBTQ guide on what to watch, who and when at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
For reporters and creators following and telling Petrillo’s story, GLAAD has provided this Fact Sheet to ensure fair and accurate coverage, including guidance on reporting on transgender athletes.
To ensure comprehensive and fair coverage of LGBTQ olympians, GLAAD’s 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Guide was created in collaboration with Athlete Ally and Pride House France, and produced by the GLAAD Media Institute, GLAAD’s training, research and consulting division. Learn more at GLAAD.org/Institute and support GLAAD’s work here.