The 61-year-old Willem Heinis from Hilversum will participate in the World Transplant Games in Perth, Australia, in two weeks time. He hopes to win a medal in the discus throw. And that is quite an achievement in itself, given that he has been living with a donor heart for 24 years after a heart attack. He tells his special story to NH.
Twenty-six years ago, Willem suddenly felt very strange during a boat trip with his family. A little later it turns out to be completely wrong and he is rushed to the hospital with screaming sirens.
In coma
There it appears that Willem has suffered a heart attack. Willem: “It was very wrong. My pump capacity was only thirty percent.” In the AMC in Amsterdam he is treated with angioplasty and kept in a coma.
Two years later, at the age of 37, he receives a donor heart. The doctors give the heart a lifespan of five to ten years. But nothing could be further from the truth: Willem has lived for more than 24 years, in his own words, ‘in the spare time of his life’ with his new heart.
What is the success formula for his working heart? On the one hand he dedicates it to the quality of his donor heart, on the other to himself: “I think I am a strong person.”
World Transplant Games
The fact that he sees himself as a strong person has mainly to do with my sportsmanship, says the 61-year-old Hilversummer. “In the same year that I received my donor heart, I started exercising again.” He came into contact with the sport of athletics, discus throw to be precise.
He turns out to be a natural talent and qualifies for the World Transplant Games. The sporting event is organized every two years and is intended as a tribute to the donors and their families. In addition, the importance of organ donation is promoted through the ‘games’.
Willem doesn’t waste any time and sets the bar high: “I hope to win a medal this year.” Whether or not he succeeds remains to be seen. The World Transplant Games will be in Perth, Australia from April 15-22.