Transgender runner wins bronze years after protest lodged

A transgender runner has beaten eight competitors at a world championships event years after being at the centre of a protest.

A transgender runner finished in third place at the World Para Athletics 400m race in Paris on Friday (AEST).

The bronze finisher was Valentina Petrillo’s ninth medal in women’s events.

Petrillo finished the race in 58.24, seconds behind Omara Durand of Cuba (52.82) and Alejandra Perez Lopez of Venezuela (57.88) in a field of 11 entries.

Petrillo, 49, was running in a category for the visually impaired after being diagnosed with Stargardt disease at age 14, resulting in a loss of sight, Fox News reports.

The disease stopped the Italian’s athletic ambitions until the age of 41, when Petrillo, as a man, returned to sport and would go on to win 11 national titles in men’s categories.

In an interview with BBC published in 2021, Petrillo first opened up to family about transitioning in 2017 and eventually underwent hormone therapy in 2019.

Valentina Petrillo on the track in Paris. Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images.

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

Petrillo became the first transgender athlete in the international Paralympic Women’s Championship back in 2021 and currently holds the Italian records for the 200m T12 (27.17) and the indoor 400m T13 (59.77), both of which are for visually impaired athletes.

According to outkick.com, Petrillo’s time in the race would have been good for 14th place in the men’s division.

The BBC reported stated that Petrillo lost about 11 seconds in the 400m and 2.5 seconds in the 200m after the start of transitioning.

Valentina Petrillo celebrates her performance. Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images.

“Better to be a slow happy woman than a fast unhappy man,” Petrillo said.

At the time of the report, 30 athletes signed a petition that said Petrillo should not compete for titles against biological women.

“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,” Fausta Quilleri, a lawyer from Brescia and a runner in the over-35s “Master” category said at the time.

The World Para Athletics Championships allow transgender females to compete in women’s categories.

However, World Athletics has banned transgender women from participating in women’s sports at the Summer 2024 Paris Olympics to “protect the female category.”

This story originally appeared on Fox News and has been republished with permission

Originally published as Transgender runner wins bronze years after protest lodged