Valentina Petrillo, an Italian man who identifies as a woman, took third place in the women’s 400-meter T12 race at the 2023 Paris World Para Athletics Championships.
Petrillo, 49, who was running in the category for those with visual impairments, finished behind Omara Durand of Cuba (52.82) and Alejandra Perez Lopez of Venezuela (57.88) with a time of 58.24 seconds. Coming in fourth place was Moroccan runner Fatima Zahra El Idrissi.
Since identifying as a woman, Petrillo has claimed several women’s records and titles, including Italian visually impaired runner’s records for the 200-meter T12 (27.17) and the indoor 400-meter T13 (59.77).
