Thanks to a generous donation of £1,500 to Royal Berks Charity from Kidney Care UK the team were able to take part again after the Games were cancelled due to Covid-19 for the past two years.
Paul Bristow, Chief Executive of Kidney Care UK, said: “We’re delighted to be supporting the Royal Berkshire Hospital Team to help them compete in the British Transplant Games 2022 in Leeds. We have been a proud partner of the Transplant Games for the last 10 years and we’re looking forward to another fantastic event. The Games are an incredible opportunity to unite the transplant community, especially after the last two years and the struggles many in our community have faced. Whether you are there to enjoy the camaraderie, to take part, or to win, everyone is there for the same reason: to show the world that organ donation and transplantation changes lives.”
The British Transplant Games are the flagship project of the charity Transplant Sport and have been in existence for over 40 years since the first “Transplant Olympics” took place in Portsmouth in 1978. At that time, these Games were an international event and included teams from France, Greece and even the USA.
The Games aim to demonstrate the benefits of transplantation, encouraging transplant patients to regain fitness, whilst increasing public awareness of the need for more people to join the NHS Organ Donation Register and discuss their wishes with their families. They also seek to thank and celebrate donor families and the gift of life. The 2022 Games will be held in Leeds.
Barb, an RBH Renal nurse of 27 yrs said “This is one of the highlights of my social and work diary. I feel so so privileged to spend 4 days annually with this amazing group of RBH competitors and other Competitors across the UK. A group of people that have experienced the ravages of renal failure, the Hardship, the restraints & life-changing events chronic disease imposes not just on the suffer but their families as well. Transplantation is the ultimate act of giving, a true gift of life out of someone else’s darkest moments, life and hope are given to other families.
The games for me are a true celebration of life, health, and achievement however small. It’s also a celebration of thanks and an acknowledgement for those amazing families who have donated and an excellent way of increasing the profile of transplantation and the continued need for organ donation”.