Establishment of a New Sports Center for the Vilnius Region

A new Vilnius Region Sports Center will start operating in the Vilnius Region on June 1. Its main and most important objective is to promote the physical activity of Vilnius Region residents, train highly qualified athletes and develop the most popular sports activities. The establishment of the Vilnius Region Sports Center was authorized at the January 2022 Council meeting.

Currently, the Vilnius Region Sports School is actively and effectively operating in the area of Vilnius. It provides children with non-formal education, complementary education, and formal education; hence, the Vilnius Region Sports Center would provide continuity of championship education training programs. Athletes who have achieved high-performance levels and match high mastery programs would be admitted to the athletic center. The sports center would also engage in the development of mass sport by organizing sports events, celebrations, championships, competitions, and games. It would popularize physical activity among the residents of the Vilnius region.

The Sports Center of Vilnius Region will organize and carry out informal education, sports activities, public sports, tourism, and entertainment services. There will also be opportunities for children, youth, and adults to engage in physical education, healthy lifestyle, and raising highly qualified athletes. Through winning more and more awards in sports competitions for athletes from the Vilnius region, the new Sports Center would guarantee progress, continuity in the development of skills and programs, as well as education of athletes of the high championship. The pupils of this center would represent the Vilnius region in the republican and international competitions and would have greater opportunities to join the Lithuanian national team, thus popularizing the name of Lithuania and the region in the European and world championships, at the Olympic Games, and other international competitions.

In the new Sports Center, groups for five sports will be created: biathlon, field hockey, soccer, volleyball, and athletics. During the meeting of the Council, the deputy of the Vilnius District Self-Government, Robert Komarowski, argued that the sports disciplines in which the athletes of the Vilnius region have the greatest achievements are currently selected for the establishment, but the possibility of extending the sports offer is not ruled out:

“The Vilnius region has a deep, long-standing tradition in the field of sport; therefore, it was decided to submit to the Council this ambitious and necessary draft resolution for the region’s athletes. Sports activities in the Vilnius region are actively developed year by year. Consequently, it is important to provide athletes with conditions for improvement. It is the duty of the local government to take care of their champions and support them, especially since they make their homeland famous with their honorable achievements every year. I am glad that the local government’s investments are already bearing fruit – Karol Dąbrowski, a Vilnius District Sports School graduate, will represent Lithuania at the Olympic Games in Beijing this year. Additionally, the biathlon track in Niemenczyn, opened in 2017, delights athletes from the Vilnius region and biathletes from all over Lithuania. This year, on February 12-13, the Lithuanian Biathlon Cup competition is planned here, and in 2023 the Baltic Cup will also be held in Niemenczyn. I am extremely pleased with this decision, and I believe that the local government’s investments in young athletes will bring international and world achievements in the future,” the deputy mayor of the local government, R. Komarowski commented on the Council’s decision.