This June saw a team of very special Aussies heading overseas to
compete for their country. Looking at them in their team uniforms and
hearing them talk about their training, you might not guess that all
of them have had organ or tissue transplants.

The World Transplant Games are a fantastic event for everyone who has
had a transplant, giving them an opportunity to compete, meet others
around the world and come together to share their second chance at
life. I have had a kidney transplant, and was so excited to head to
Göteborg, Sweden with my team.

My main event in the transplant games is the 20km cycling road race.
Me and my cycling team mates had the opportunity to race around a
beautiful park, Slottsskogen, in the Swedish summer. The park hosted
both the road race and the time trial, and provided a fantastic
challenge for us all. Two big hills kept us on our toes (and off the
saddle!) I witnessed one of my best friends’ sprint finish and saw him
seize the gold; as well as watching an Aussie team mate cross the line
arm in arm with a competitor. In my race, I raced in the adult
category for the first time against competitors from Britan, France,
and many others. The race was such a blast that coming in second and
claiming a silver medal was just icing on the cake.

The spirit of the World Transplant Games is fantastic. The competition
is hard and everyone pulls out their best, but at the finish line, we
all come back together again. A hand shake of congratulations is more
than just a courtesy in these games- it’s a recognition of where we
have all come from, and what we have just achieved.

I usually cannot pick a favourite moment when I have been to the
transplant games, but this year it is quite easy. On my sixth and
final lap of the road race, my team mates met me up the final hill and
ran alongside me as I fought the slope. Their incredible support
helped me up that hill, and that memory of them running with me is
something I will hold forever! Overall in the games I won two medals,
both silver, in both the cycle road race and the cycle time trial.

The games give us the opportunity to celebrate our second chance at
life. We can put on our cycle gear, power up a hill and show the world
how far we’ve come. Transplants save lives- we’re living proof of
that! This is a joyous event, a fantastic experience that we all get
to share together.

We looked pretty flash in our Transplant Team cycle uniforms as well-
Thanks Body Torque! It was so easy to spot each other in the crowd!