Irish transplant and dialysis athletes aim for top-three finish in Zagreb

FIRST THE Olympians, then the Paralympians, now the Irish transplant and dialysis team have become the latest batch of athletes to head abroad in search of glory.

The 27-member team flew out from Dublin Airport yesterday afternoon to the European Transplant and Dialysis games in Zagreb, Croatia, which take place over the next week.

The timing is propitious given the hype surrounding the Olympics and the forthcoming Paralympic Games.

These games are taking place in the hiatus between the two events in London, and it is hoped that they can capitalise a little on the euphoria.

The previous European Transplant and Dialysis Games were held in Dublin in 2010. Ireland finished second in the medals table then. This time around, the team are expecting a top-three finish.

The team won 13 gold, 14 silver and 12 bronze at the World Transplant Games in Stockholm last year.

The athletes got a send-off from Katie Taylor and the rest of the Irish Olympics team, whom they met after the homecoming on Wednesday.

The team includes 18-year-old world record holder Robbie Lyons from The Swan, Co Laois, who had a kidney transplant three years ago.

At last year’s World Transplant Games he broke the world record for a transplant recipient at long jump, recording an impressive 5.36m and bringing home the gold medal.

He is competing in the 100m, 200m, 400m and the long jump, his best discipline. “It is not going to be easy this year. To bring back any medal would be a delight,” he said.

The European games are different from the world championships in that dialysis patients can also compete, whereas the world championships are only for transplant patients.

Alison Honner (26) from Portlaoise is on a dialysis machine every night for 10 hours and gets her training in during the day.

She will compete in badminton, bowling and shot put. She is a former classmate of Irish badminton Olympian Scott Evans. “I’d be a little better than Scott,” she joked.

The oldest member of the team is 74-year-old John McAleer, who lives in Co Antrim. He will compete at golf and bowls. He is a dialysis patient and has been waiting 4½ years for a kidney transplant.