Being well enough to take part in the British Transplant Games was a real motivating factor for Jenny as she recovered from her liver transplant. Thank you for sharing your story, Jenny
Jenny received a liver transplant in 2021 and by 2024 she had taken part in the British Transplant Games three times, an achievement that seemed unimaginable when she first became ill.
Jenny had previously been fit and active, but received an urgent liver transplant after suffering sudden acute liver failure in May 2021. She said: “It was a complete shock to me. I went from feeling inexplicably ill to waking up to be told I had had a liver transplant.
“I felt so weak, and I knew that recovery would be a long road. However, when the doctors heard I was a keen cyclist, they told me about the Transplant Games and the thought of being able to compete the following year was a real motivating factor.”
Having only recovered in time to compete in the 2022 Games in Leeds, Jenny took gold in the 10K race and raised more than £2,500 for transplant recovery research. The same year she won two bronze medals at the European Transplant Games and in 2023 she took part in the World Transplant Games in Australia, bringing home two gold medals.
She was hoping to add to that collection at the 2024 British Transplant Games in two cycling events and the 5k donor run, but said: “The most important thing is to be amongst my transplant teammates, taking part in the event and raising awareness for transplant health and well-being.”