THE UK’s first ever successful baby heart transplant survivor, now a gold medal winning athlete, has launched the return of the British Transplant Games to her home region.

Twenty seven years ago, Kaylee Davidson-Olley of Houghton-le-Spring was the UK’s first baby to survive a heart transplant operation at the age of just four months.

She has since represented Great Britain in the World Transplant Games, take gold in the 4 x 100m track relay in South Africa last year.

Today (THURS) she was joined by other transplant athletes at The Sage, Gateshead, to launch The Westfield Health British Transplant Games to be staged at venues across Newcastle and Gateshead next July and August.

The Games aim to promote the benefits of transplants and celebrate the many achievements of transplant athletes while highlighting the desperate need for UK organ donors.

Kaylee said: “For the British Transplant Games to take place here in the North-East in 2015 fills me with great pride – as this is where my story began at the Freeman Hospital.

“To be given such a generous gift by a family who themselves were dealing with loss, is one I will be forever grateful for. The life they have given me is one I have lived to the fullest and continue to do so.

“The achievements of all transplant patients are a true inspiration and the Games will highlight many of those inspiring stories and hopefully inspire people to sign onto the NHS Organ Donor Register.”

One sport making its debut in 2015 is basketball, with the British Basketball League’s most successful team the Newcastle Eagles joining Kaylee at the launch.

Paul Blake, managing director of the Newcastle Eagles, said: “Having seen first-hand the critical work delivered by the team at the Freeman Hospital we were delighted to take on the task of delivering a Basketball tournament at the British Transplant Games 2015 Newcastle and Gateshead.

“It really is a great honour and fantastic way to showcase transplant sport as well as raise awareness of organ donation.”

Businessman and Chair of the Local Organising Committee, Graham Wylie, said: “We really want the people and businesses of the North East to get behind this great event.

“Not only will it deliver direct economic benefits for the area, but importantly it will also leave a lasting legacy in terms of increased awareness of organ donation.

“We hope that it will help to significantly boost the number of people signed up to the register in our region”.

More than 700 competitors are expected to take part in the four-day games, a dramatic rise on the 99 athletes who contested the first games in 1978.