Competitions

Sponsored by the National Kidney Registry, the Donor Games was established to bring together elite athletes who are also living kidney donors in the spirit of rigorous competition. By competing in challenging workouts against non-donor athletes, the Donor Games helps to disprove the widely held misconception that donating a kidney can negatively affect an athlete’s health and physical abilities.

The Donor Games launched in 2020 and almost immediately had to pivot due to the pandemic to offer virtual competitions. Since its inception, the Donor Games has grown to offer quarterly Open events (performed virtually) and a yearly in-person Championship.

In 2022, the Donor Games began sponsoring individual donor athlete events, highlighting the unique athletic abilities of donors in their chosen sports. The Donor Games is also a sponsor of the Kidney Donor Athletes (KDA) climb of Kilimanjaro in 2022.

As the Donor Games continues to grow, additional regional competitions may be sponsored to allow donor athletes to compete against other donors in a variety of workout events.