he Garrahan Cup began yesterday and ended today at the Cenard. About 150 athletes who received transplants and on dialysis participated, of which 20 are treated at the Hospital. The initiative of the Secretary of Sports and the Argentine Pediatric Foundation promotes sports as an integral aspect of health treatment.
“You have to be encouraged to play sports. After the transplant you can”, says Mateo Cócaro, 17 years old, and a bone marrow transplant recipient at Garrahan Hospital. He knows what he’s talking about. From the National Center for High Performance Sports (CeNard), on his second and last day of competition in the Garrahan Cup, he came out first in swimming in the 100-meter freestyle, a discipline in which he won three gold medals at the World Cup in England. 2019.
The Garrahan Cup is an initiative of the Secretary of Sports of the Nation and the Argentine Pediatric Foundation (FuPeA) that seeks to promote physical activity as an integral part of the health recovery process of people who have undergone a transplant or receive dialysis treatment .
Some 150 transplant athletes of all ages participated in the competition, including 20 children and adolescent patients and former Garrahan patients who obtained good marks in different categories and disciplines such as swimming, badminton, table tennis, newcom, walking and volleyball.
“We came to accompany the families and patients who are participating in this sporting experience, and we are proud that sport is within the hospital as one more aspect to work on comprehensive health,” said Gabriela Tozoroni, member of the Board of Directors of the Hospital present at the conference.
And he added a message to the competitors: “Regardless of whether they can qualify or not, the most important thing is to play as a team and that sport is one more aspect of health and social inclusion to improve their quality of life.”
During yesterday and today, boys and girls from Garrahan competed in different disciplines and obtained different marks, demonstrating that sport is a great ally in the treatment of complex health situations.
Thus, Emanuel Ramírez, 17, won in throwing the ball, Daniela Romero (19) and former patient, competed in swimming, 50-meter breaststroke and
100 free meters; Julieta Pérez, a former patient and current hospital worker, competed in the 50-meter breaststroke, 50-meter freestyle, and relay, as did Mora Sappag, 12, while Matías Cano (20), swam the 50-meter backstroke and relay.
“For the first time in a national tournament, it included boys and girls on dialysis and there was a special mention and recognition to the fathers and mothers who encourage this participation in sports tournaments, as well as monitoring and health checks,” said Carlos Lirio, professor of Physical Education that, together with Ezequiel Correas Espeche, coordinate the Physical Activity Program for Children and Adolescents with Garra (PAFINAGA) that has been operating in Garrahan since 2014.
“The expectations for the future is to continue adding people on dialysis, not just boys, and add new disciplines such as newcom, which is an adapted sport, with simpler and more playful pre-sport activities,” he explained.
The event featured the special visit of Facundo Conte, a figure from the national men’s volleyball team, who stopped by the Cenard to greet the athletes. “I came to accompany the Garrahan Cup to support sport in all its forms and promote physical well-being and health for transplant recipients. Do it and practice it ”, the player and bronze medalist in Tokyo 2020 left his message through social networks.
“I am participating in the Garrahan Cup in swimming and for me the sport came hand in hand with rehabilitation, thanks to the doctors and the incentive from my family who sent me to swim,” says Daniela, a heart transplanted competitor, “As I always say, organs never go to heaven, this is what the transplant does and this is what sports do”, she is grateful.
“Sport for me is an escape from all this, it helped me a lot in the treatment, in the post and pre (transplant), and when you’re down it lifts you up,” says Tomás Minoli, a former Garrahan patient, after competing in table tennis and thanks the hospital “for all the years that helped me and literally saved my life.”
The Games for Transplanted Athletes have more than 25 years of history and represent, for the competitors, the possibility of qualifying for the World Cup for Transplanted Athletes to be held in Perth, Australia, in April 2023. With more than 3,500 competitors and 14 disciplines sports, the competition is expected to receive transplanted athletes from 56 countries.
