A close-knit group of transplant patients are delivering a message of grit and resolve through sport as they compete in the UAE’s first-ever World Transplant Games in Germany.
Fuelled by the mantra that they are strong, not fragile, the team of six are among 2,500 participants, including organ donors and donor families, at the week-long games in Dresden.
The Games are taking place this week with athletes from more than 50 countries competing in a wide range of events.
The UAE’s team of five lung, kidney and liver transplant recipients from Sudan, the US, India, Bangladesh and South Africa plus one Emirati donor have shared how they are thriving after life-altering surgeries and are living proof that “miracles do happen”.
For Omar Tom, it has been about beating the odds from the age of three when he was diagnosed with not one but two rare kidney conditions, making visits to the doctor a constant feature.
“At 36, I'm the strongest and healthiest that I've ever been. I've been in sport my whole life,” he told The National as he spoke about his excitement at competing in the 100m and 200m races this week.
“I did not think I would be alive at 36, let alone be stronger, so this is something I'm very grateful for. It's is a gift of life, it’s about showing gratitude to your donor, coaches, friends and to God.
“We are really grateful for the organ, grateful for the light we’ve been given because we are all dealt different cards in life. And whatever that card is, it's your choice to play the best game you can play.”
Strong, not fragile
Mr Tom, a natural athlete who enjoys basketball, football, cricket, swimming and more, has pulled through two kidney transplants. His father was his first donor in 2010 but after his body rejected the organ, his younger brother was the second donor in 2016.
The Sudanese national has always pushed back if treated differently like when his anxious family asked younger siblings to carry heavy shopping bags instead of him.
“There was an approach of fragility that my family has had, like I could break at any moment,” he said. “So there was this frustration, annoyance that created an obsession of making sure that I’m not only strong to myself, but to everybody around me.”
He has lived in the UAE all his life and runs a market research and technology company.
“Discipline is really the best muscle to have,” he said. “If you pick sport, it creates a discipline in your life. There is also a mental element, the discipline of practice to become 1 per cent better every day.”
Since the 2017 launch of Hayat (life), the National Programme for Organ Donation and Transplantation, more than 1,100 organ transplants have been completed across the Emirates.
The UAE has made significant strides since the government passed a law in 2016 allowing organ transplants from the living and the dead and encouraging the community to sign up to improve the quality of life of patients suffering from organ failure.
Building a community
The UAE’s participation in the World Transplant Games came through the persistence of Katie Larkins, 36, a liver transplant recipient who submitted the approvals and paperwork for the country to participate in its maiden games.
A science teacher in an Abu Dhabi school, the Californian native has launched an online support group for the transplant community.
“Being a transplant recipient is a very isolating experience, it’s a very rare experience. The community aspect of being able to talk to each other is important,” said Ms Larkins who received the transplant from a Kuwaiti donor four years ago.
“You need someone who understands your experience, makes you feel more included and helps you get back into society.”
Sharing the transplant experience also deepens the understanding of what patients and families undergo.
Ms Larkins was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune liver disease in 2021 after months of extreme fatigue and exhaustion. It was only after alarming blood results, turning so jaundiced that her skin took on a yellow hue, severe water retention and swelling in the abdomen and legs that doctors realised she was far more ill than she looked.
“By the time I had my transplant, my liver was completely done, my kidneys were starting to fail, I was beginning to show signs of heart failure because the liver regulates what everything else is doing,” she said.
Ms Larkins stopped teaching for several months out of concern that her immunity would be compromised in school.
“I spent months pretending that everything was fine. I had a pretty unhealthy dose of denial. I didn't really accept that I was well and truly sick until they told me that I couldn't leave the hospital,” she said.
The World Games, running from August 17 to 24, offer hope to patients on transplant waiting lists around the world.
Ms Larkins initially planned to manage the UAE team but was swept up in the excitement of competing in the 5k and 3k to spread the word that others too can be strong.
“After a situation that's so life threatening and so scary, it's unnerving for some people to start exercising again, because you're so scared of doing anything to harm your body,” she said.
“It took me a while get back into exercise but I'm really glad I did. It's something that all transplant patients should try to set their sights on – that goal to be physically healthy and fit – because by keeping ourselves healthy, we can keep our donated organs healthy for much longer.
“Our team this year is small but it's our first time and I expect that in 2027 when we do this again, the team will be much larger because a lot more people will know about it.”
From oxygen tanks to throwing the javelin
In social media posts, the athletes share their exuberance over breathing freely after a transplant and explain why they have taken up competitive sport.
Emirati Hind Al Maazmi donated a kidney to her mother and competes in the 5km, 3km and 100m “to show what love can drive you to”.
Double lung recipient Husena Beguwala, from India, said she fought setbacks for years and is running the 5km and 3km for her son, for awareness and for “everyone still waiting to rewrite their story”.
South African Justin Anthony, also a double lung recipient, looks forward to the field competitions.
“From living on oxygen 24/7 to throwing the javelin in Germany, I’m breathing freely today thanks to my donor,” he said. “I compete to honour a miracle and prove that, when hope seems lost, miracles can still break through.”
Fatima Rashid, a kidney recipient from Bangladesh, has a packed schedule with the 100m, 200m, 5k and javelin.
She took on scuba diving, weightlifting and skiing post-transplant and competes because “movement is my freedom”, she said. “Now I compete to prove that strength isn’t just physical – it’s mental, spiritual, and fuelled by purpose.”
