Italian transgender athlete Valentina Petrillo fell short of reaching the final of the women’s T12 400m for visually impaired runners at the Paralympic Games. In Monday’s semifinal, the 50-year-old athlete, despite running a personal best time of 57.58 seconds, finished third, behind Iran’s Hajar Safarzadeh Ghahderijani and Venezuela’s Alejandra Paola Perez Lopez. The top two finishers in each semifinal advanced to Tuesday’s final.
Petrillo had previously qualified for the semifinal by finishing fourth in her first-round heat with a time of 58.35 seconds. Diagnosed with Stargardt disease at the age of 14, a retinal disease causing progressive vision loss, Petrillo had to give up running for a while. However, her dream to compete was reignited by the inspiring 200m gold-medal performance of Italian athlete Pietro Mennea in the 1980 Olympics.
Petrillo began her gender transition in 2019, but she has been involved in para sports since the age of 41. Notably, she had secured bronze medals in both the 200m and 400m world championship races in 2023, clocking 26.31s and 58.24s respectively. Despite missing out on the final, Petrillo’s journey to the Paralympics is a testament to her dedication and perseverance, serving as an inspiration to aspiring athletes.
