Valentina Petrillo, an athlete who openly identifies as transgender, is poised to make history as she gears up to compete in the Paralympic Games. Picked to compete for Italy in the women’s 200m and 400m events to be held in Paris, Petrillo will be the first in her category to join the competition. Petrillo, who transitioned in 2019 when she was 50, secured bronze medals last year at the World Para Athletics Championships in Paris in both 200m and 400m races. Before her transition, she won 11 national men’s titles.
Despite the reality of her participation, Petrillo is keeping it low key saying, “It still feels unreal and I keep my expectations modest, especially after barely missing the chance to compete in Tokyo. I’ll devote my thoughts to the Paris Games once I set foot in France.”
Yet Petrillo has not just battled gender transition, but also the impact of Stargardt disease, diagnosed at age 14, which has reduced her vision to just 2% of normal vision.
Andrew Parsons, president of the International Paralympic Committee, informed BBC Sport that Petrillo’s participation in Paris is as per World Para Athletics policies. He foresees a need for a united front on transgender policies across the sporting world. While stricter rules for transgender athletes’ participation in elite women’s competitions have been imposed by several sporting authorities, including athletics, cycling, and swimming, the IPC gives each governing body the flexibility to formulate their own policies. World Para Athletics, for instance, allows any individual legally recognised as a woman to enter the competition.
There has been criticism on the inclusion of transgender athletes in women’s sport, citing advantages gained during male puberty that transitioning does not erase. On the flip side, LGBT+ advocacy groups argue such exclusions equate to discrimination and insist for more research on how transition impacts athletic performance.
The Paralympics in Paris will be held from August 28th to September 8th, 2024. – Reuters