The Renal Patients Athletic Association was founded in 1998, by a group of transplanted and dialyzed people. Our motivation was our passion for life, the love for the sports and our intension to share, with the fellow renal patients, the charms and the emotions that only sports can offer. The Renal Patients Athletic Association - R..P..A..A. is recognized under the Law of the Hellenic State 2725/99 and the Greek Athletic Authorities.
All the people working for the R.P.A.A. are volunteers and athletes themselves.

The triptych of our activities:
Sports activities - social intervention - cultural expression.

Our objective and ambition is to:
- Cultivate and develop the transplant and dialyzed people athletic activity
- Give equal opportunities in social benefits that elevate and ameliorate the quality of life.
- Mark out the effectiveness of dialysis as a successful therapeutic method and an inevitable process of life.
- Adduce the value and the benefit of transplantation.
• Sensitize the society in the idea of Organ Donation

To materialize our objectives and ambitions, we have undertaken remarkable pioneering and dynamic initiatives, in institutional, and social field

In the institutional field, our contribution in the culture and growth of athletic activity of renal patients was decisive, by the legislative consolidation, in the Sports law that was recently voted by the Greek Parliament. Besides this, we were pioneers in the foundation of European Federation for sports for transplanted and dialyzed people, (European Transplant and Dialysis Sports Federation - E.T.D.S.F.) and the establishment of the institution of Pan European Championship (Games) for transplanted and dialyzed people.

In the Athletic field, we cultivate mainly Olympic sports as, track and field, swimming and table tennis. Our athletes, in total 50 individuals, from 17 cities and towns, men and women, take part in the World Transplant Games that takes place every 2 years, in the Pan European Championship for transplanted and dialyzed people every 2 years. We organize the Pan Hellenic Championship, for transplanted and dialyzed people each year. Also we participate in the Bowling Championship organized by the Piraeus Bowling Association.

Our social work is also extensive. Particularly for the promotion of the IDEA of ORGAN DONATION, we have undertaken dynamic and appreciable initiatives, as:

a) In collaboration with O.T.E. (the national telecommunications organization), we registered in the Telephone Books of 17 regions and in the Yellow Pages, two pages with sketches and messages for the Organ Donation. What is more, we printed out 2 types of telephone timecards promoting Organ Donation in 500.000 and 750.000 copies. We have already submitted 5 more types of timecards.

b) With the help of sensitized cartoonists we have made impressive posters that we use as material for our social expedition.

c) Each year we dispatch to institutions, (Municipalities, Banks, Associations of workers, Civil Services, etc.) 4.000 greeting cards in order to remind the message of ORGAN DONATION

d) We have made concrete proposals to the Ministries of Defense and Public Order for briefing the army, the police officers and the officers of the Greek Armed Forces, in the idea of ORGAN DONATION.

e) We have made a proposal to the International Olympic Committee, (IOC), for the establishment of the idea of the Organ Donation as a modern Olympic message.

f) We created our web page www.san.gr projecting our activities and messages.

g) Considering the symbolic relation between the Olympic Flame and transplantation, members of our association, in 1996 and in 2000, carried the Olympic Flame. Aim of this attendance was the projection and the distribution of the message of the ORGAN DONATION.
2003. A new starting point.

We promise that we will continue with the same passion, the same dynamism and the same consequence, giving perspective to our fellow patients. Among our ambitious objectives, stand out:

a) A privately owned clubroom, where the office of R.P.A.A. will be accommodated and simultaneously will provide the convenience for gymnastics, using static bicycles, and static runways and a table for table tennis

b) It is a fortunate coincidence, that OLYMPIC GAMES 2004 and CULTURAL OLYMPIAD, offers a golden opportunity to project and widely distribute the IDEA of ORGAN DONATION, as a modern OLYMPIC MESSAGE.