Martina Navratilova rips Italian sprinter set to become first transgender woman to compete at Paralympics

Tennis great Martina Navratilova slammed Italian sprinter Valentina Petrillo as a "pathetic cheater" as the 50-year-old athlete is set to become the first transgender woman to compete in the Paralympics next week. 

Navratilova, an outspoken supporter of protecting women’s rights in sports, took to social media on Thursday to call out Petrillo, who is slated to compete at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris in the women’s 200 and 400-meter races in the T12 classification for visually impaired athletes. 

Valentina Petrillo of Italy celebrates after the women's 400m T12 final during day six of the 2023 Para Athletics World Championships at Stade Charlety on July 13, 2023, in Paris, France. (Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)

"Petrillo is a pathetic cheater," Navratilova’s post on X read. 

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In an earlier post responding to a video of Petrillo speaking about the Summer Games, Navratilova said it was "sickening" that the Italian runner was "stealing women’s trophies." 

"Yet another male stealing women’s trophies. In [the] Paralympics, no less. Sickening." 

Petrillo, 50, was diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition known as Stargardt disease as a teenager. The Italian athlete competed as a male, winning 11 national titles in the men’s T12 category between 2015 and 2018 before eventually transitioning. 

"I began transitioning in 2019 and in 2020 I realized my dream, which was to race in the female category, to do the sport that I had always loved doing," Petrillo told The Associated Press in a recent interview.  "I got to 50 before it came true … we all have the right to a second choice of life, a second chance."

Italy's Valentina Petrillo trains in Pieve di Cento, near Bologna, Italy, Monday, Aug. 19, 2024. Valentina Petrillo is set to become the first transgender woman to compete at the Paralympic Games at the end of this month in Paris.  (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

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Last year, World Athletics banned trans athletes from competing in women’s events if they transitioned after puberty. But its para counterpart, World Para Athletics, has not followed suit, giving way to Petrillo becoming the first trans woman to compete in the Paralympics. 

According to the AP, the WPA said transgender athletes in its women’s competitions are required to declare that their gender identity for sporting purposes is female and to provide evidence that their testosterone levels have been below 10 nanomoles per liter of blood for at least 12 months prior to their first competition.

Some competitors have publicly voiced their concern about the fairness of Petrillo competing in the women’s events. It’s something the sprinter has considered.  

Valentina Petrillo of Italy at the 2023 Para Athletics World Championships in Paris on July 13, 2023. (Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)

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"I have asked myself ‘But Valentina, if you were a biological woman and you saw a Valentina racing with you, what would you think?’ And I responded to myself that I would also have some doubts," Petrillo told the AP. "But then through my experiences and what I learned I can state clearly … that it doesn’t mean that because I was born a man that I will be stronger than a woman."

Petrillo, who won bronze in the 200 and 400-meter races at last year’s World Para Athletics Championships, will have a chance to compete for a spot in the finals of the 400 and 200-meter sprints, taking place on Sept. 3 and 7, respectively. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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