MICHAEL Kennedy will find next month’s Australian Transplant Games to be a a breath of fresh air.
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The Crookwell man, 53, received a life saving double-lung transplant in 1994 at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney.
Now he is readying to compete in an inspirational sporting event, exclusive to transplant recipients.
Transplant Australia will stage the Australian Transplant Games, September 24 to October 1, in western Sydney.
The spirit of the Games is to encourage transplant recipients to be involved in a sporting competition, and to maintain a healthy, active lifestyle.
Many competitors previously may not have been able to engage in any sort of sporting activity due to their illness.
Their sporting quality and determination has led to many being selected to represent Australia at the World Transplant Games, held every other two years, where Australia is often one of the top five nations competing.
Mr Kennedy competed at the World tournament in 2015 in 10-pin bowling, petanque and tejo, a game originating in Columbia and not unlike a tossing game of boules.
At the Australian tournament, Mr Kennedy will compete in 10-pin bowling, lawn bowls and dragon boat racing.
Before his transplant, Mr Kennedy could not travel far from home, tired quickly, rarely managed to walk more than 5-10m a time, and used an oxygen mask at night.
Since receiving his new lungs, he can “go anywhere I want to, do anything I want to, and live life to the fullest,” though, he said, he still tries to “take it day by day”.
Competing at the Games was “something that was never thought possible before [my] transplant,” he said.
“It is great to travel and meet fellow recipients [and] makes my family and friends proud.”
Transplant Australia chief executive, Chris Thomas, said competing in the Games was a way for recipients to say ‘thanks’ to their donor families; while, for donor families, it was a way to honour their loved one’s gift of life.
“Transplant recipients come from all over the country to take part,” Mr Thomas said. “Transplant Australia will highlight the very real benefits of transplantation by forming a human image of the total number of years of extra life enjoyed by the recipients at the Games.
“Our athletes demonstrate living proof that transplantation saves lives. They can start a family, play sport, get back into the workforce; all because of the generosity of someone else.”
For more information about the Games, to register as an organ or tissue donor, or support fundraising, go to transplant.org.au.