The summer season of athletics is still in full swing, but Lithuanian track and field athletes do not stop rewriting the annals of history. This year, 13 national records have already been improved, and one of them became a world record when discus thrower Mykolas Alekna threw 75 meters 56 centimeters 2 months ago.

In winter, Lithuanian track and field athletes participated in the World Indoor Championships, fourth-place triple jumper Dovilė Kilty performed well at the European Indoor Championships, and in the stadium, in the European Throwing Cup, discus thrower Martynas Alekna won the bronze medal.

For athletes who have returned to competition after the Olympic season, a time of testing will soon begin – on June 18, the country’s elite athletes will participate in the World Athletics continental tour competition “Cosma Cup” in Kaunas, and on June 26-29, the best athletes will represent Lithuania in the European Team Championship. This will take place in Madrid (Spain), and Lithuania will compete in the strongest division for the first time.

This year, the Lithuanian Championship will take place on August 1-3 at the renovated Palanga Stadium, and this start will probably be the last test before the most important competition of the year – the World Championship. The World Championships will be held at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo (Japan) on September 13-21.

The President of the Lithuanian Athletics Federation Eimantas Skrabulis reviewed the topicalities of athletics and the goals set for the season. The latter emphasized the importance of the European team, Lithuanian and World Championships, the entry criteria and the inevitable improvement of the athletes’ results.

– This year, athletes have already broken 13 Lithuanian records. How does this number predispose you to the main starts? , lengvoji.lt asked E. Skrabulis.

“The year 2024 is over and the whole community has lived with impressions from the Olympic Games. The achievements in Paris were not bad for us – we had a good team, an Olympic medal, and an Olympic record, which was improved. Most of the time, the beginning of our year is calmer, because athletics is richer in summer. In winter, there are fewer competitions, starting athletes and competitions. In addition, a shorter season.

The fact that so many national records have been achieved is very gratifying. All records and all competitions are equally pleasing. Of course, we also have such a record, which has become a world record, which is truly an exceptional case. We also had the world record last year, and this year we even improved it twice. This shows that we have top-level athletes at the global level. National records are the beginning of the road to the top places in international competitions. They show that athletes are improving. A record is a positive thing, so I always wish athletes personal records that would grow into national or even world records, as Mykolas Alekna demonstrated.

It is important to mention that we do not have good conditions to compete in winter. The first good arena in Lithuania was opened in Kaunas only recently, and we were able to set several more records there.

– In which games do you see the most progress?

– Adas Dambrauskas repeated the Lithuanian record at the European Championships, a really very high-level competition. He is quite a young athlete, so his progress cannot go unnoticed. If he is healthy and continues to move in this direction, he can definitely break into the European sprinters’ elite. Everything is in his hands and in the hands of the coaches, and the federation contributes as much as possible in every way. There is a very high level of competition in the sprint.

Many people like to say that Lithuania is a country of throwers, but athletics has more than 40 competitions. We would not like to be a one-race federation, so every athlete has the right to compete. We are very happy that athletes of very different competitions are included in the most important competitions of the year. This shows that we have opportunities and talents.

– Is it possible to evaluate and draw conclusions about the first results of the summer season?

– I would say that it is still a little early. Only the summer season is just getting in full swing, and it will be very long. The most important start of the year, the World Championship, will be in the second half of September. This is a challenge for athletes, because to qualify for the championship you need to have a norm or a lot of ranking points. This means that they have to make at least two peaks per season: compete in June and July and strive for the norm or the already mentioned ranking points. Later, the preparation cycle before the World Cup will await.

Now I would refrain from commenting, because the season is just beginning, and many have not started yet or have not started much. In the coming weeks, the number of competitions will increase. We have to admit that we lost two leaders of the national team due to injuries, and injury is a very painful thing for everyone. Both Airinė Palšytė and Greta Karinauskaitė – the leaders of their matches and both are very necessary for the team – will not be able to contribute to the national team this year. It is likely that they will not be in the most important competitions of the year.

– June 18 For the first time, the World Athletics continental tour competition “Cosma Cup” will be held in Kaunas. How will they help our athletes and to what extent is this a historic achievement for the whole of Lithuania?

– According to the current ranking system, athletes need to participate in top-ranking competitions and collect additional ranking points. Our athletes are looking for starts abroad, and here the competition will be in their country, in the stadium and even in the sector. I believe that this is a great advantage in achieving high results.

For the organizers, such competitions pose many challenges – both financial and logistical, because of the wide range of competitions and it is likely that athletes from more than 30 different countries will participate. If such competitions become traditional, they will contribute to the popularization of athletics. And the main goal is to give our athletes the opportunity to compete in high-ranking competitions with good competition.

We have had several championships of different age groups in Lithuania, which have shown that support and home borders really do not interfere. In order to win, you need to be in good shape, you also need luck, but doing it at home is more beautiful, more pleasant and, maybe even easier in a psychological sense.

– There are less than two weeks left until the European Team Championship. Are you satisfied with the candidates of the national team and the potential team?

– This European Team Championship is a historic challenge for the Lithuanian national track and field team. For the first time in history, they were among the 16 strongest, as I say – in the Super League. Among the greats who have a dozen or several dozen times larger population and very deep athletics traditions. We will compete with them in one league, which proves that we are strong enough. 37 races and each race must include an athlete or a team, if it is a relay.

We plan to delegate about 50 athletes, and the whole team, with coaches and service personnel, will consist of about 70 members. I’m not talking about financial and logistical challenges, because the essential detail is to collect the strongest athlete in each race. I really hope that all our strongest athletes will defend the colors of the national team. This is the Little Olympiad. If the football team were to be among the 16 strongest in Europe, it would be the same here. This is the cosmos. It will not be easy for us to stay in that league, but if everyone is the strongest and accompanied by success, then we have a chance to fight for survival.

– Does the goal remain the same – not to fall out of the top division?

– The goal is to fight and strive for the best result. The contribution of every athlete to the piggy bank is invaluable. Whether it’s 16 points for first place or even 1 point for sixteenth place can be fatal. When we got to the Super League, we were half a point ahead of the other team that was left overboard. It was unclear until the last race, and the competition itself is very interesting and intense. It’s interesting to watch and be sick for your team. There, the athletes do not start for themselves, but for the team. It is a team championship, although the races are separate – except for relays. One of the most important competitions of the year for us.

– Almost 2 years have passed since the European Team Championship in Chožuv (Poland). How do you remember him?

– I remember very well the championship where we moved up to the top league. That drama and uncertainty persisted until the last seconds. The competition was crowned with our victory and entry among the strongest states. However, we had good conditions and a stadium in Poland, but it was empty. As far as I know, more than 80% of tickets have already been sold in Madrid at the moment. A very cozy stadium, and such support of the spectators will give the competition fantastic charm and tension.

– Perhaps the most important start for athletes in Lithuania, the national championship, will take place in the renovated Palanga stadium in the first days of August. Can a new coating contribute to better results?

– Conditions in athletics have a very big impact on the results. The quality of sectors and treadmills is an integral part of a high result. It is very nice that the Palanga Municipality was able to completely renovate the entire stadium with a new surface and sectors. The federation, as partners, has decided that Palanga will become the capital of the summer athletics championships for at least five years. It is the best base for our athletes to compete, and the championship is one of the most important events of the year at the national level.

All the strongest must start here, because the competition gives a lot of extra ranking points. I think that our athletes, who compete in the Diamond League and other commercial competitions, should be here in Lithuania, in front of their own spectators. This is a mandatory condition that makes the title or medal of the Lithuanian champion more important. The championships are raised to a new level of quality and we will try to maintain it.

– What can be promised to the participants and spectators of the Lithuanian Championship?

– The Federation contributes financially to the implementation of the participants’ plans for high sporting excellence. According to the contracts, they must start in the national championship, because it is an obligation. This is what we are preparing athletes for together with the state and other partners.

In order to interest the viewer, it is necessary that all the best athletes are in the championship. That is why we are organizing the championship in Palanga, because it is the only base in Lithuania that meets at least the minimum quality requirements set by us. On the other hand, we know that Palanga is the summer capital of Lithuania. There are many people who go to Palanga at that time and have a lot of free time. If we have our own stars, then I believe that many Lithuanians, as in recent years, will gladly come to the stadium.

– In May, the President Valdas Adamkus Athletics Arena opened its doors, and the Palanga Stadium will soon be renovated. In terms of athletics infrastructure, is this a step forward?

–Uniquely. Severely overdue, about 30 years, but this is a step forward. We cannot fail to be happy with the rapid and high-quality appearance of the Kaunas Arena, we cannot fail to be happy with the renovation of the Palanga Stadium. We very much hope that the Vilnius Municipality will continue its promises and within two years will build a high-level arena in the capital, which is necessary here. We care about the arena a thousand times more than the stadium. This would be a partial repayment of the debt to the athletes for what they have done, are doing and will do for Lithuanian sports and the entire state. You can criticize the fact that there are little delays, but you can’t help but be happy about the objects that appear.

– You were at the opening of the Kaunas Arena, you are constantly communicating with the athletes. What feedback do you hear about President Valdas Adamkus Athletics Arena?

– Everyone is happy. A high-quality arena has been built in a fantastic historical place, it’s a good emotion, but let’s wait for the first serious competition and the results will be even louder than any comments.

– In September, the World Championship will take place in Tokyo, and at the moment only Mykolas Alekna has a guaranteed passport. What kind of team can we expect in the Far East?

– If the doors were closed today, more athletes would enter. Only Mykolas has the standard, but according to the rating system, more athletes are included. What matters is not what we have today. What is important is what we will have in Tokyo in September. The difficulty of entry is similar to the Paris Olympics, and it will not be otherwise. In athletics, competition in the world has increased significantly, perhaps even sometimes.

I say that the entrance door to international championships is very small, and there are a lot of people who want it, so it’s hard to get through. The goal, if we have healthy people and avoid injuries, is to have the same number as in Paris. We can expect more, because we had 11 athletes in Paris, but another 7-8 were on the threshold of entry. We remove injured leaders from the list of potential candidates, but I don’t think we will limit ourselves to one or a few athletes. I am sure that we will have a dozen athletes at the World Championships.

– Can the size of the team match the 2023 World Cup in Budapest (Hungary), where we had 16 representatives?

– Our goal is to have over 20 athletes. If the country’s sports funding system, especially in terms of athletics, was non-discriminatory, which has been the case for 30 years, we would have had about 20 athletes in all the most important starts of the year. I’m not talking about the European Championships, where we sometimes have more. However, I don’t want to expand on finances, but there is long-term discrimination there. Those who understand know what I’m saying, and those who don’t want to hear have nothing to talk about with them.

 

lengvoji.lt

Photo by Alfredas Pliadis