Transgender sprinter fails to reach Paralympic final

 

Transgender athlete Valentina Petrillo failed to reach the T12 400m final at the Paris Paralympics after finishing third in her semi-final.

The 51-year-old Italian sprinter competed in the women's T12 classification on Monday, for athletes with visual impairments.

She finished second in her heat with a time of 58.35 seconds, 1.38secs behind Venezuela's Alejandra Paola Perez Lopez, to qualify for the semi-finals later on Monday.

Despite recording a personal best time of 57.58 in her semi-final, she again finished behind Perez Lopez, while Iran's Hajar Safarzadeh Ghahderijani won in a time of 56.07.

Petrillo had qualified sixth fastest for the semi-finals - 2.99secs behind top qualifier and world record holder Omara Durand from Cuba.

The final is on Tuesday at 11:14 BST.

Petrillo is also competing in the women's T12 200m in Paris, which gets under way on Friday.

What are the rules and what has been the reaction?

Speaking to BBC Sport before the Games, Petrillo, who transitioned in 2019, said her participation in Paris would be an "important symbol of inclusion".



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