The countdown begins: Team UAE get ready to compete at the World Transplant Games

The excitement is building as the United Arab Emirates gears up to make its historic debut at the World Transplant Games (WTG), taking place this August in Dresden, Germany. For the first time, a team of organ transplant recipients and living donors will represent the UAE on the world stage under the banner of Hayat, the National Programme for Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation.

This landmark participation comes just one year after the UAE became a member of the World Transplant Games Federation (WTGF), a global initiative promoting health, hope, and athleticism after transplant. The WTG is the largest international event for transplant athletes, living donors, and donor families – a powerful celebration of life, second chances, and human resilience.

Team UAE isn’t just heading to compete. They’re going to inspire. Each athlete has a story rooted in survival, courage, and the gift of organ donation – showing the world that life after transplant can be active, meaningful, and extraordinary.

Meet the Athletes (@UAEtransplantathletes):

Hind Juma – Living kidney donor. Donated her kidney to her mother in 2022. “We’re both thriving with renewed energy,” she says.
@Hind_Juma
Katie Larkins – Liver transplant recipient & UAE Team Manager. Saved through the UAE–Kuwait organ exchange in 2021. “This is how I honour my donor – by living fully.”
@the_expat_organ_lady
Omar “OT” Tom – Two-time kidney transplant recipient. Entrepreneur and sprinter. “I’m racing to see how far I can push my body beyond what is deemed normal and to spread the message of abundant possibilities.”
@OTofficial
Fatima Rashid – Kidney transplant recipient. “Every movement now feels like a celebration – and a tribute to the life I’ve been given.”
@KidneySoldier
Justin Anthony – Double lung transplant recipient. “Just when I thought it was the end, my miracle came through. Now I breathe freely – and compete with pride.”

@jusbreathe_ph