Carlow men, Pat Savage and Tomás Ó hAileagáin to represent Ireland at European Transplant Games

TWO inspiring Carlow-based men are to take part in the European Transplant Games this week.

Pat Savage, who lives in Old Leighlin and Tomás Ó hAileagáin, living in Carlow town are taking part in the games in Arnhem in The Netherlands which are taking place from 21 to 27 June and which celebrate the power of organ donation and the extraordinary second chance at life.

In total, 25 Irish athletes will take part in the games, which will bring together more than 1,000 athletes from across Europe, including organ and stem cell transplant recipients, people undergoing dialysis, living donors, families and supporters.

For Pat Savage, this will be his first time competing at the transplant games.

Pat is married to Anne and is a proud father to Oisín (12) and Sam (9). He works with Carlow County Council as chief technician across the roads, transportation and corporate departments.

Pat's transplant journey followed several years of serious kidney illness. He spent two years on dialysis, initially undergoing peritoneal dialysis before complications required a move to haemodialysis. Life before transplant revolved around treatment and illness.

"Pre-transplant, I was either receiving dialysis or feeling unwell. My wife held the fort while I was sick."

Everything changed when a close friend made the extraordinary decision to become a living kidney donor. The transplant in 2021 transformed not only Pat's life but the lives of his entire family.

"My donor completely changed my life. Organ donation is truly the gift of life. I can now be part of my children's activities, attend games, coach teams and simply be a normal dad again. Post-transplant, my wife got her life back, too."

His older brother received a kidney transplant in 2006 after both brothers developed glomerulonephritis, a disease that caused their kidneys to fail.

Representing Ireland for the first time is a tremendous honour for Pat.

"I'll feel incredibly proud to represent my country at the transplant games. I'll also be proud to represent my living donor and his family for the gift of life he has given me. It all ties back to promoting organ donation and spreading awareness of its importance."

Pat added: "Giving an organ is a selfless act that gives someone a second chance at life. Hopefully, stories like ours can help people overcome some of the fear of the unknown around donation."

Away from training, Pat remains heavily involved in his local community. He coaches athletics, hurling and soccer, while also enjoying music, current affairs and world politics. His sporting inspiration comes from Kilkenny hurling legend, TJ Reid.

Pat's advice for anyone returning to activity following transplant is both practical and encouraging: "You don't have to train for marathons or win All-Irelands. Any form of exercise is important after transplant. There are clubs, sports partnerships and organisations that can help people of every ability level get started."

Tomás is the only donor representing Ireland at the games. Having already been a regular platelet donor, he joined the unrelated bone marrow registry through the Irish Blood Transfusion Service. In 2020, he received a call that would change two lives.

"I was matched with a transplant recipient so I underwent a bone marrow donation procedure in St James's Hospital, Dublin. The process was very straightforward and recovery was quick. Knowing it could make such a difference to someone else's life made it incredibly worthwhile."

He says he will never forget when he received a letter from one of the recipients five years later. “They told me they were well and had been able to watch their young children grow up. That really brought home the impact that donation can have," he said.

Arnhem will be Tomás' first transplant games and he is looking forward to helping spread awareness about organ and stem cell donation.

"I think it's a fantastic opportunity to highlight the importance of donation, the impact it has on people's lives and to show that recipients can continue to live healthy, active lives afterwards," said Tomás.

He is particularly keen to dispel some of the myths surrounding bone marrow donation.

He said: “A lot of people think joining the bone marrow registry means a painful procedure with long-term effects. My experience was completely different. It was straightforward, recovery was quick and it was one of the most worthwhile things I've ever done."

As Tomás prepares to represent Ireland, he will have plenty of support from home, including his parents Andy and Joan, his three brothers, nephew Andrew and newly-arrived niece, Calla.

Transplant Sport Ireland (TSI) is the national governing body for transplant sport in Ireland. For more information about membership details and updates from the games, visit TransplantSportIreland.ie or email transplantsportireland@gmail.com.