Modern sports started gaining popularity right after the declaration of independence of Lithuania.
In 1924, Lithuanian sportsmen made their debut at the Olympic Games in Paris. In 1937 and 1939, the Lithuanian basketball team won medals at the European Championship. This was the beginning of the basketball era in Lithuania. After the Second World War, the country’s basketball players were the strongest in the Soviet Union, and many times won Soviet Championships. Many players were awarded gold medals: Modestas Paulauskas (1972); Angelė Rupšienė (1976 and 1980); Valdemaras Chomičius, Rimas Kurtinaitis, Šarūnas Marčiulionis and Arvydas Sabonis (1988, Seoul). After the country regained its independence in 1990, the Lithuanian basketball team participated in the Olympics in Barcelona, Atlanta, Sydney, Athens and Beijing, and won bronze medals three times. The Lithuanian national men’s basketball team became 2003 European Champions.
Women are also active in basketball. In 1938 in Rome, they took second place in Europe, and in 1997, they won the European Championship.
Basketball Club Žalgiris (BC Žalgiris), which was founded in 1944 in Kaunas, is one of the most prestigious men’s basketball clubs in Lithuania. BC Žalgiris played for 40 years in the Basketball Super League of the former USSR. During this time, it became a four-time Champion of the USSR (1951, 1985, 1986, and 1987), won silver medals twice and was awarded six bronze medals. In 1986, BC Žalgiris won the Intercontinental W. Jones World Clubs Cup in Argentina.
The end of the 20th century was also successful for BC Žalgiris. In 1998, the team won the Cup Winners' Cup, also known as the European Cup Winners' Cup. A year later, Žalgiris became the strongest men’s basketball team in the old continent. During that successful period, coaches Jonas Kazlauskas and Algirdas Brazys were training the team. Many talented Lithuanian basketball players started their professional career in this club.
In April 2005, Lithuanian basketball celebrated an unforgettable victory. BC Lietuvos Rytas won the ULEB Cup. The next year they won the second ULEB title.
Over 250 participants of the Olympics brought back to Lithuania 29 gold, 22 silver and 57 bronze medals.
The country’s first Olympic champion was boxer Danas Pozniakas.
The first Olympic champion of independent Lithuania was Romas Ubartas, who had success in track and field athletics.
Virgilijus Alekna, a gifted discus thrower, became champion at the Sydney Olympics. In summer 2003, Virgilijus Alekna proved that he could be the best discus thrower in the world. In Athens, Alekna won his second Olympic Champion title and in 2008 he won the bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics.
Daina Guzinevičiūtė became Women’s Shooting Champion at the Sydney Olympics. Austra Skujytė won the silver medal in heptathlon in the Olympics in Athens.
Lithuania is well known due to the victories of its athletes in modern pentathlon. Andrejus Zadneprovskis won the silver medal at the Olympics in Athens. Edvinas Krungolcas became the Champion of Europe in 2003, 2004 and 2005. He also won the World Cup. At the Beijing Olympics in 2008 Edvinas Krungolcas won the silver medal and Andrejus Zadneprovskis achieved the bronze medal.
Gintarė Volungevičiūtė also had success at the Beijing Olympics. She finished with the sailing silver medal and wrestler Mindaugas Mizgaitis won the bronze medal.
Victories of Lithuanian winter sports athletes are more moderate, but still there are some reasons to be proud of. Biathlonist Algimantas Šalna together with his team-mates won the gold medal at the Sarajevo Olympics. It was the first Olympic gold medal won by a Lithuanian athlete at the Winter Olympics.
In 1998, Vida Vencienė won the gold medal in 10 km classical skiing at the Calgary Olympics. She was the first Lithuanian woman who became the Olympic champion. In the same Games she was the third in skiing 5 km.
National Anthem of Lithuania is also played at the Parolympics. Lithuania is proud of its sportsmen, who have been awarded medals at the Parolympics.
The Lithuanian national ice hockey team has not participated at the Olympics so far, but we are proud of Lithuanian-born Darius Kasparaitis and Dainius Zubrus, who have played an important role in the NHL.
Lithuanian ice dancing duo Margarita Drobiazko and Povilas Vanagas won the bronze medals at the 2006 European Championship.
Would it be easy to imagine that a man could raise a balk above his head, which weighs 202,5 kg, raise 150 kg 8 times and the axis of Apollo 6 times, which weighs 166 kg? Would it be possible for a person to raise the weight of 320 kg from the earth for 10 times and to carry for 30 m things, which weigh 410 kg, or even to throw into a 17 feet (5 m 18,16 cm) height a weight of 22 kg? All these results set the World Record. All these records were set by Žydrūnas Savickas, who has won the title of the World's Strongest Man five times.
The dancesport formation team Žuvėdra is a five-time World Champion and five-time European Champion.
A couple of standard dances Edita Daniūtė and Arūnas Bižokas have won World Standard Dance formation Championship and the European Cup Standard, as well as the classical dance programme at Non-Olympics.
Mountain climber Vladas Vitkauskas took the highest peak on every continent between 1993 and 1996.
Pilot Jurgis Kairys has distinguished himself in acrobatic flying.
