‘Unfair’: Trans woman admits criticism is fair, but continues to run against biological women in Paralympics

Valentina Petrillo became the “first transgender woman to compete in the Paralympics” in Paris, France. 

Petrillo, a 50-year-old biological male from Italy, competed as a woman in the 400-meter T12 (visually impaired) event Monday.

He narrowly missed out on a trip to the 400-meter finals, finishing third in her semi-final heat. The competitor is set to run in the 200-meter T12 event Friday.

Petrillo, named Fabrizio at birth, reportedly began running competitively as a child but stopped after being diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition called Stargardt disease. 

Decades later, he began to run competitively at age 41, “winning 11 national titles in three years in the male T12 category for athletes with visual impairment.” 

After coming out as a transgender woman in 2017, Petrillo wanted to continue racing. So, in 2019 he began hormone therapy to lower testosterone levels below the limit set out by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2015. 

“I’m not the same as before. Fabrizio no longer exists,” she told BBC in 2021. “I’m happy as a woman and running as a woman is all I want.” 

While Petrillo says the transition was difficult, causing her to gain weight and actually lose speed, she says it was worth it in the end. 

“As a sportsperson, to accept that you won’t go as fast as before is difficult. I had to accept this compromise because it is a compromise for my happiness. Better to be a slow happy woman than a fast unhappy man.” 

However, by September of 2020, she competed in her first paralympic event as a woman and was anything but slow, a fact admitted by the BBC. 

“In reality, she is not slow, just slower, as her gold medals in last September’s Italian Paralympics championships attest,” BBC’s Dany Mitzman wrote. 

In fact, Petrillo won gold medals at the Italian Paralympic Championship in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter T12 events.  

In 2023, the runner placed third at the World Para Athletics Championships in both the 400-meter T12 and 200-meter T12 events. 

Petrillo wasn’t just beating other disabled athletes either. 

“She has also fared well in competition against non-disabled women, some of whom have protested that a trans woman has a major advantage,” Mitzman continued. 

In 2021, Fausta Quilleri and 30 more of Petrillo’s biologically female competitors filed a petition against the transgender athlete. Through the petition, they sought to have the president of the Italian Athletics Federation and the ministries for Equal Opportunities and Sport, bar her from competing against biological females, citing unfair advantages. 

“Her physical superiority is so evident as to make competition unfair,” Quilleri said.  

In arguing against the IOC’s focus on testosterone only, Quilleri says it “makes no sense” when size and mass are also a factor. 

“If she wants to run with us, we would be happy for her to do so. We will always welcome her, but we don’t want her to compete with us for titles.” 

While Petrillo openly admits her biological female competitors’ concerns are valid, she ultimately dismisses them, saying she’s simply following the rules. 

“I asked myself, ‘Valentina, if you were a biological woman and had a Valentina, a trans, racing against you, how would you feel?’ And I gave myself answers – ‘astonishment, confusion and doubt.’ I would have those things as a woman. So, I believe these doubts and questions are legitimate. 

“I respect and comply with the IOC and World Athletics rules. I do the tests. I don’t feel like I’m stealing anything from anyone.” 

Still others agree with Quilleri, calling it blatant cheating. 

“Why all the anger about the inspirational Petrillo?” wrote Harry Potter author J.K Rowling on X after Petrillo competed earlier this week. “The cheat community has never had this kind of visibility! Out and proud cheats like Petrillo prove the era of cheat-shaming is over. What a role model! I say we give Lance Armstrong his medals back and move on. #Cheats #NoShame.” 

Rowling’s post has now garnered over 3.9 million views, 65,000 likes and over 9,000 reposts.