Lithuania Olympians Association Strengthens Regional Links

6 | 1 | 2017

The Lithuanian Olympians Association has reached out to neighbouring Olympians from Latvia and Poland in an effort to develop the bonds of mutual friendship and cooperation between Olympians from the three countries. Leaders from all three national Olympians bodies met in Birstonas, Lithuania for an international conference based around the theme United by the Spirit of Olympic Solidarity.

The event, which took place on 4 December, saw 25 Olympians gather to share knowledge and ideas on their approach to spreading the Olympic ideals, the provisions of the Olympic Charter and continuing the traditions of Olympic sports. The NOAs also discussed organisational structures, opportunities for development and growth, current priorities and future activities.

 Key resolutions to emerge from the meeting included:

• To create a regional working  group made up of Olympians from Lithuania, Latvia and Poland;
• To strive to positively influence the lives and health of Olympians;
• To provide solutions to the issue regarding employment and transition of Olympians at the end of their athletic careers;
• To encourage representatives from other European Olympians Associations to attend the next international conference, due to take place in Poland in 2017;

Lina Inga Kaciusyte, Olympic champion, LNOC Executive Committee member and President of the Lithuanian Olympians Association, said:

"We have been working hard in recent years to get Olympians together; we have been in discussions with LOA Board about new programmes and initiatives and decided to find out more info about the activities of other European NOAs. We knew that it wouldn’t be easy to get many countries together - we collected neighbouring Olympians to start with, with the aim towards a continuation of collaboration.

“We look forward to working in close cooperation as we know that our mission is to serve society and help make world a better place. Our mission signifies that "we are united by the spirit of Olympic Solidarity" and this was the title of our 1st international conference".

WOA welcomed the conference and supports the NOAs of Lithuania, Poland and Latvia in their goal to develop greater cooperation and support between organisations representing the interests of Olympians in the region. This is in line with WOA’s overall strategic aim to empower NOAs in regional and continental groupings in order to create more effective support pathways for Olympians. WOA encourages any events and activities which promote knowledge sharing, capacity building and the coordination of resources amongst NOAs.