_0_175x-.jpg)
A trio of tennis activities welcomed players from across the country to compete in the British Transplant Games, which took place in Gateshead and Newcastle July 30 and 31st 2015.
Thursday welcomed adults and young people to take part in a social tennis session held at the Northumberland Club, ran by Alison Cartmell and Melissa Marshall. The players competed in some fun matches, whilst the youngsters took part in the Tennis Factory activities. It was a great afternoon and medals were awarded for the match play part of the afternoon. The final positions were as follows,
Gold – Paul Tucker (Plymouth Adults)
Silver – Andy Davis
Bronze – Thomas Doherty (Harefield) / Andrew Lewis
The next day saw two competitive events across the 2 North East local authorities. The adult tennis event saw John Henderson at the Northumberland Club welcome 43 competitors compete in a singles tournament. Gateshead Leisure Centre then saw 15 eager players take part in the mini tennis competition for youngsters aged 6-11 years old.
Rosie Pybus and Melissa Marshall led the mini tennis, which was full of enthusiasm, movement and determination. There were a number of round robin groups with the players taking part in singles matches. The matches were umpired by volunteers who had received training from Gateshead Council / Lawn Tennis Association and Lesley commented on the success of the event,
“This was the first time I have volunteered at a tennis event. It was incredible and we were amazed by the standard of the competitors. Some of them were as young as 6 and were playing some fantastic shots and having great rallies!”
Following the singles, a fun doubles event took place, which welcomed the competitor’s siblings and friends to pick up a racket and join in!
The results are as follows,
Males 6-8 years:
Gold- Kristof Polgar (Manchester)
Silver-Aaron Sinkins (Birmingham)
Bronze-Mason Bebbington (Manchester)
Female 9-11 years:
Gold- Hannah Draisey (Evelina London VIPS)
Silver- Lucy Flynn (Evelina London VIPS)
Males 9-11 years:
Gold-Joseph Hunsley (Leeds)
Silver-Matthew Smith (Glasgow)
Bronze- Rian Geoffrey Snell (Evelina London VIPS)
Bronze- Charlie Haslam (Nottingham)
All of 3 events were run in conjunction with the British Transplant Games and were also supported by the Tennis Foundation.
Jo Cunliffe who is the Regional Participation Manager was thrilled,
“Tennis is very lucky to be involved in such a prestigious event. The participants have already been through a massive amount in their lives and the determination, dedication and enjoyment was inspiring to witness. Tennis is a game for anyone and we all hope the players continue enjoying the sport following the Games.”
The British Transplant Games are the flagship project of the charity Transplant Sport and have been in existence for over 30 years when the first “Transplant Olympics” took place in Portsmouth in 1978. At that time, these Games were an international event and included teams from France, Greece and even the USA.
Since these early beginnings with competitors, affectionately known as “99 blooming miracles”, the Games have grown and are held every year in different cities throughout the UK. The British Transplant Games have been staged annually since 1978 in 17 host cities across the UK including Portsmouth (1994), Newcastle (2000), Edinburgh (2007), Belfast (1998) Medway (2012), Sheffield (2013) and Bolton (2014).
The Games aim to demonstrate the benefits of transplantation, encouraging transplant patients to regain fitness, whilst increasing public awareness of the need for more people to join the NHS Organ Donation Register and discuss their wishes with their families. They also seek to thank and celebrate donor families and the gift of life.
To find out further information about the British Transplant Games http://www.britishtransplantgames.co.uk/about-the-games/.