Rotterdam selected to host the World Transplant Games 2031
Rotterdam has been selected to host the World Transplant Games 2031, bringing transplant recipients from around the world together to compete, connect and celebrate the gift of life. More than a week of sport, the Games will unite lived experience with Rotterdam’s strengths in transplantation, science and innovation to create lasting impact. The World Transplant Games demonstrate what is possible after transplantation. Through sport, they celebrate second chances, raise awareness of organ donation and show how physical activity can support recovery, long-term health and wellbeing.
Rotterdam’s transplantation story extends far beyond the World Transplant Games. The city has been strengthening its position within the international transplantation community for several years, with the International Liver Transplantation Society congress in 2023 marking an early step towards a broader legacy.
Together, these congresses form more than a calendar of individual events. They will connect patients, healthcare professionals, researchers, policymakers and partners to exchange knowledge, strengthen collaboration and build a lasting legacy around transplantation, health and quality of life.
Where science meets sport
The Games make the impact of transplantation visible. Through sport and personal stories, transplant recipients demonstrate what recovery and renewed participation can look like, while raising awareness of organ donation. Rotterdam’s ambition is therefore not only to deliver an exceptional event, but to use it as a catalyst for long-term health, participation and quality of life.
A Rotterdam collaboration
The winning bid was put together in collaboration with Rotterdam Partners, TransFit, Erasmus MC Transplantation Institute, Erasmus MC Foundation, Rotterdam Topsport, the city of Rotterdam, and Bureau Vermaeck, along with the Dutch transplant community. The successful bid was built on close collaboration. At its heart is Peter van Maurik of Transfit – Foundation for Sport and Transplantation. As a transplant recipient, his lived experience and commitment to improving the lives of others helped shape the ambition behind Rotterdam’s bid.
When I compete, my donor competes with me.
Peter’s Story: A Reborn Rotterdammer
Ten years ago, on a night unlike any other in Rotterdam, I received the gift that gave me back my life. And, in many ways, gave me a new identity. I often say I’m a reborn Rotterdammer, not because the city changed, but because I did. My heart transplant wasn’t just a medical event; it was a profound reset, a quiet promise whispered between survival and gratitude.
Since that day, I’ve lived with a deep, steady passion to cherish and guard the gift beating within my chest. I train, I swim, I stay active not out of obligation, but out of reverence. Every lap in the pool, every breath drawn in cold morning air, is a thank-you note written with motion. I protect my second chance because someone, somewhere, gave it to me, and I honor that gift by living fully.
The reasons are simple, yet immense. I wanted to witness life’s beauty again, the kind that unfolds softly, unexpectedly. I wanted to watch my granddaughter and my two grandsons come into this world, tiny hands curling into new beginnings. And I did. In a poetic twist that still brings me to tears, my granddaughter now shares her birthday with my transplant day. Each year we celebrate together, her first breath, my rebirth, two lives marked by the same date on the calendar.
Rotterdam gave me a new heart, but it also gave me purpose. Ten years later, I carry that purpose proudly, beating strong, beating grateful, beating forward.
Stay connected to the World Transplant Games!
Sign up for the latest news and updates about the World Transplant Games Rotterdam.
Looking forward to welcoming the international transplant community
We look forward to welcoming transplant recipients, donor families, healthcare professionals and supporters from around the world to Rotterdam in 2031, and to building a legacy that will continue long after the Games.
Want to learn more about the World Transplant Games in Rotterdam or explore opportunities to contribute to their legacy? Contact Catherine Kalamidas, subscribe to our newsletter or follow Rotterdam Convention Bureau on LinkedIn for updates.
Stay connected to the World Transplant Games. Sign up here!
