First trans Paralympic athlete says she is a ‘symbol of inclusion’

Valentina Petrillo is gearing up to become the first out transgender athlete to compete at the Paralympic Games, and has noted that her participation “is an important symbol of inclusion”. 

The sprinter, 50, was chosen to represent Italy in Para-athletics at the Paris 2024 Paralympics and will compete in the women’s T12 classification for athletes with visual impairments. 

Petrillo, set to compete in the T12 200 and 400-metre sprints, has spoken out against critics who suggest that her involvement in the women’s categories is unfair. 

“The historic value of being the first transgender woman to compete at the Paralympics is an important symbol of inclusion…This is not a lifestyle choice for me,” she said to BBC Sport. “This is who I am.”

“And the way I am, like all transgender people who do not feel they belong to their biological gender, should not be discriminated against in the same way that race, religion or political ideology should not be discriminated against.

“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.”

Petrillo, who first underwent gender-affirming care in January 2019 when she started hormone replacement therapy (HRT), added that “everyone will have their questions” but only a “minority” will understand her lived experience as a transgender athlete.

In 2021, over 30 athletes signed a petition sent to the president of the Italian Athletics Federation and the ministries for Equal Opportunities and Sport attempting to challenge Petrillo’s right to compete in women’s competitions.

Andrew Parsons, the president of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), said to the outlet that Petrillo is “welcome” in Paris under the current World Para Athletics policy, which states that a person who is legally recognised as a woman is eligible to compete in their impairment-qualified category. 

However, Parsons added that he wants the sporting world to “unite” on its transgender policies, as there is no cohesion between various governing bodies. 

The publication previously explained that Petrillo’s testosterone levels are “now consistently well below the two-nanomoles-per-litre level” since undergoing gender-affirming care. 

For reference, as per NHS England, “normal” testosterone levels for cisgender women are anything under 3.0 nmol/L, whilst women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome — with one in 10 women having the condition in the UK — frequently see their testosterone levels at or under 5.2 nmol/L.

Prior to receiving gender-affirming care, Petrillo achieved 11 national titles in the T12 category between 2015 and 2018. Last year, Petrillo won two bronze medals at the World Para Athletics Championships.