Paralympics, Valentina Petrillo in the semifinals in the 400m. “At the center of sport there should be inclusion, not the fear of diversity”

The Neapolitan, 50-year-old transgender, on her debut at the Games placed second in the fourth heat of the T12 category (visually impaired and blind) with a time of 58.35. Speaking to Rai microphones, she recalled her battle against discrimination and prejudice.

di Sports Editorial
2 September 2024
Valentina Petrilllo in the semi-finals in the 400m T12 at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games

Valentina Petrilllo in the semi-finals in the 400m T12 at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games

Valentina Petrillo has earned her pass to the semi-final in the 400m – T12 at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. At the Stade de France, the Neapolitan, at her first Paralympic Games, closed her heat, the fourth, with a time of 58.35, placing second and therefore directly accessing the next round, scheduled for this evening at 20.43.

The transgender Italian athlete at her first Paralympics

Let us remember that Petrillo, 50 years old, has been visually impaired since the age of 14, when she was struck by Stargardt syndrome. Until a few days ago she was considered the first transgender athlete in history to compete in a Paralympic Games, having completed the gender affirmation process in 2019 and having made her debut at last year's World Championships in Paris where she had won the bronze medal in the two distances, 200 and 400m flat in the category Visually impaired. However, Dutch athlete Ingrid van Kranen finished ninth in the women's discus throw final at the 2016 Rio Games.

Paralympics: Legnante and Petrillo, "in Paris to win"
Departing from Fiumicino airport for the Paris Paralympics, sprinter and first transgender at the Gioghi Valentina Petrillo (ANSA/TELENEWS)

Member of Pontevecchio Bologna, the Italian sprinter, 11-time national champion and Paralympic debutant, came in second in her heat in Paris, thus earning sixth place overall, just a few tenths shy of her personal best and giving the impression of having broken the ice and having room to improve in the next round. The race for the distance medal is scheduled for Tuesday, September 3, and who knows, maybe our Italian will manage to win a historic final. 

The commentary on the race

Speaking to Rai microphones on the track after the race, Valentina Petrillo said she was satisfied with her race and excited for the next round, where everything will be at stake.It was very important to reach the semi-finals. I knew I had to beat the Chinese, but she started strong and deceived me a bit, I should have controlled more but that's okay", she explains. "The purple track already means a lot, it's a color I love and in this stadium there is a lot of comfort, the welcome was beautiful and the atmosphere is incredible. I'm very happy". 

The fight against discrimination: “Stop being afraid of us”

Elisabetta Caporale underlines how with her participation she has already made history and recalls that in addition to her opponents, she fights against prejudice and discrimination. “I fight against all this that accompanies the life of all people like me, because it is not right that we suffer certain things just because we exist – says the athlete –. In the world people die just because they are trans, there is so much fear and I embody these two diversities (disability and trans identity, ed.) and I hope that through my message we can finally normalize these phenomena and don't be afraid, which is what bothers me the most: people who are afraid of me."

Learn more:

First trans athlete at the Paralympics: "Do I hate social media? Of course, I expect it. But my response will only be on the track"

First trans athlete at the Paralympics: "Do I hate social media? Of course, I expect it. But my response will only be on the track"

She experiences criticism by “listening, because I am the first to have asked myself these questions – she adds –. I myself, when I stopped running because I no longer felt like doing it as a male, asked myself this question: 'How would you react if you saw Valentina on the track?'. The questions are legitimate – she concludes – we all ask ourselves, but in this journey I understood where the problem lies, it is a problem of information and you don't have to be afraid to question oneself. In the world of sport, the word must be at the forefront inclusion. Sport is beautiful like this, it makes us alive and happy."