South West transplant patients take home medals at British Transplant Games

A team of transplant patients from the South West were successful in bringing home a number of medals from the Westfield Health British Transplant Games, held in Leeds at the end of July 2022.

The flagship event for the charity, Transplant Sport, sees teams from hospitals across the UK come together in a four day festival of sport and life. The event attracts around 2,500 transplant recipients, live donors, donor families and supporters.

The South West team achieved an impressive 4 Gold medals, 6 Silver medals and 1 Bronze medal across a variety of sporting events, track and field, swimming, cycling, darts, walking and snooker.

Plymouth’s team manager, John Wollington, said: “The Transplant Games are the focal point for all the competing athletes. This is no ordinary sporting event as the competitors have all undergone life-saving transplants. The aim of the games is to promote the importance of organ donation, to encourage families to have the donation conversation and to show people that you can still lead a healthy and active lifestyle after a transplant. Competitors are aged from as young as 3 to well into their 80s.

“We’d like to thank University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust’s Renal department for their sponsorship, as well as the Kidney Patient Association.”

The South West team competing this year included:

• Martin Baker from Bovey Tracey, a kidney transplant recipient, who won Gold medals in the football tournament and cricket ball throw, Silver in javelin and Bronze in volleyball.
• Mark Chapman from Barnstaple, a kidney transplant recipient, who won Silver in the 50m backstroke and silver in the javelin.
• Louise McNeill from Plymouth, a kidney transplant recipient, who won Gold in the 50m backstroke and Silver in the 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle and 200m freestyle.
• Serena Tucker, a live donor from Totnes, who won Gold in the 50m freestyle.

Congratulations to all those involved on this great achievement.