Our team won a total of 18 gold, 24 silver and 18 bronze medals at the World Games for Organ Transplants in eleven sports in different age groups.
At the World Games held in Perth with the participation of 45 countries, 19 kidney, 7 liver, 3 bone marrow and 3 heart transplant athletes took part in the national team of the Hungarian Organ Transplant Association: the athletes in eleven sports (table tennis, athletics, bowling, darts, cycling, petanque , squash, tennis, badminton, swimming, virtual triathlon) measured their strength. The most successful sports were swimming, athletics, table tennis and bowling, but petanque also brought gold medals.
Two new world records were added to the name of the Hungarian team: our thrower Tamás Mihálovits, who received a kidney transplant 8 years ago, broke his own world record 2 years ago in the shot put.
László Pengő, a heart transplant swimmer from Szentes, set a new age group world record in the 50-meter backstroke at the World Organ Transplant Games.
Gabriella Szabó, who lives in Dunakesz, was among the successful Hungarian competitors
Gabriella Szabó has had a kidney transplant since 2012, before the successful organ transplant – even during the artificial kidney treatment – he started playing table tennis competitively. He is a successful athlete and routine competitor in domestic and international competitions. He returned home with two silver medals and one bronze medal from the table tennis competition of the European Championship for Organ Transplants and Artificial Treatments held in England last year.
At the 2023 World Organ Transplant Games, she again won the silver medal in the individual table tennis competition, in the mixed doubles competition – with her kidney transplant partner Zoltán Kóka from Derecske – they won a bronze medal, and then the women’s doubles competition brought the long-awaited gold medal: with her heart transplant partner Csilla Tóthné Pataki, the podium they could stand on the highest level, so he finished the international competition with a complete collection of medals – with one gold, one silver and one bronze medal.
Gabriella’s coach is Dániel Lovas, and the table tennis captain of the Hungarian Organ Transplant Association: Imre Milos.
Photos: Hungarian Organ Transplant Association
