The Paralympics has approved a middle-aged man with poor eyesight to compete against disabled female athletes at the upcoming Games this year.
50-year-old Fabrizio Petrillo, who calls himself “Valentina” and claims to be a “transgender woman,” will be competing in the female T12 sprinting category at the Paralympic Games when it starts later this month.
He qualifies for the Paralympics because he’s listed as being “visually impaired.”
Petrillo previously competed in the male events but recently started competing against women after he claims to have “transitioned” into a “female” – a scientifically impossible feat.
In 2019, after passing his peak as a male runner, Petrillo started calling himself “Valentina” and began competing in women’s events.
In his prime, he has already won 11 national titles in the Paralympics competing among males.
The decision to include a male athlete in women’s events at the Paralympics for the first time has been met with a backlash, GBN reported.
Canada’s former Olympic head coach Peter Eriksen blasted the Paralympics for pitting men against women, calling the decision on Petrillo “shocking.”
As women’s rights advocates have warned, indulging “transgender” athletes undermines the original rational basis for having sex-specific athletics in the first place.
In some sports, it also creates an increased element of danger.
Research affirms that physiology gives males distinct athletic advantages that cannot be fully negated by hormone suppression.
Petrillo has the physique of a typical semi-athletic middle-aged man and has a clear physical advantage over real women.
Andrew Parsons, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) president, defended Petrillo’s participation.
He claims Petrillo was green-lit in accordance with the “rules” of World Para Athletics.
Parsons says he is “prepared for the criticism” he faces for approving men to compete against women.
As with the 2024 Paris Olympics, athletes are placed in the categories that align with their chosen “gender identity” and they are not required to prove their biological sex.
“We need to respect our rules, we cannot disrespect our rules,” Parsons said, according to GBN.
“So sometimes, as an individual, I think one way or another, but we need to follow our constitution, we need to follow our own rules, and, in the specific sports, the rules of the international federations need to be respected.”
Attorney Fausta Quilleri, a real woman who also runs in the over-35s “Master” category of the Italian Paralympics, petitioned the president of the Italian Athletics Federation and the ministries for Equal Opportunities and Sport in 2021 to exclude Petrillo from women’s races.
However, Quilleri’s concerns were ignored.
“[His] physical superiority is so evident as to make competition unfair,” she wrote.
She continued by noting that the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) sole focus on testosterone “makes no sense” when physique also affects athletic performance.
Petrillo first officially competed as a woman in the 2020 Italian Paralympics Championship.
During the event, he “won” gold medals in the 100m, 200m, and 400m T12 events.
Despite his gender confusion, Petrillo is married with a son.
He revealed his interest in cross-dressing to his wife in 2017.
After her initial shock, his wife supported his desire to live as a “woman.”
