Transplant Games: 'Kidney from my mum gave me second chance of life'
When Rian Snell was three-and-a-half, he faced a race against time to find a kidney donor. The Sheffield Hallam University student had been born with acute renal failure and when his mum Karen was found to be a match, he received a transplant that he says gave him “a second chance of life”.
Now 21, Rian is preparing to compete on home turf at the 2026 Westfield Health British Transplant Games. The national event is taking place in Sheffield in August, bringing more than 2,500 transplant recipients, donors and families to the city.
“The Games are a unique opportunity to share experiences with other people who have overcome life and death adversity,” Rian says.
“It’s an open place where you don’t feel judged by anyone and a chance for transplant recipients to come together like one big family.
“Having people you can relate to and to be able to express what you’ve experienced is so important and powerful. It helps you to build as a person. It’s amazing to have that support network.”
Now a second-year Sport and Exercise Science student, Rian has competed in every British Transplant Games since first taking part in 2009, just months after his transplant operation.
Earlier this year, the Norfolk native claimed his biggest sporting success to date at the World Transplant Games in Germany, winning gold medals in the long jump and relay, and bronze in the 100 metres.
“My family members got tested and, somewhat unbelievably, my mum was a match,” he says, reflecting on organ donation.
“She gave me her kidney and it’s given me a second chance of life. It has brought us incredibly close. I have such a strong bond with her because of what happened.”
The British Transplant Games is the annual flagship event of Transplant Active and aims to highlight the healthy, fulfilling lives transplant recipients can lead, while also thanking living donors and donor families for their generosity.
Sheffield will host the Games from August 6 to 9, for the first time since 2013, with competitors taking part across 26 sports.
Organisers hope the event will encourage people to talk to their families about organ donation, and help address low organ donation rates within Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.
More than 8,000 people in the UK are currently waiting for a life-saving transplant, according to NHS Blood and Transplant.
Rian says he has dedicated his second chance to sport. “Overcoming setbacks, training hard, and representing Great Britain on the world stage have all been possible thanks to organ donation, a gift from my mother. “Every achievement, every moment on the track, is a celebration of life, mine and the countless others who’ve received this incredible gift.”
- Visit www.transplantactive.co.uk