Traditional sport in

Lithuania

Basketball

Lithuania is a country where kids grow up shooting for the basket rather than the goal.

Basketball is the national sport. So much so that it is

frequently reffered to in press and conversations as

the “Second religion of Lithuania”

Basketball is also the only of world’s main sports where

Lithuania is certainly a Great Power.

With three medals in Olympic Games, three European Champions titles, a constant place in the Top 10 of the FIBA national team ranking this “Great Power” title is certainly no joke.

Basketball, “The second religion of Lithuania”, attracts the largest crowds to arenas and TV screens.

Many Lithuanians follow basketball, especially the national team

so whenever there is a major championship you may be caught in the middle of a happy crowd parading streets,

Basketball was brought to Lithuania as early as 1930s by Pranas Lubinas, a Lithuanian emigrant who returned to his homeland from America.