The Lithuanian Academy of Physical Education is the only state-supported institution of tertiary physical education

Physical education

Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....

 in Kaunas

Kaunas

Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...

, Lithuania

Lithuania

Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...

. It has the university status. Since its establishment, the academy is headquartered in Žaliakalnis

Žaliakalnis

Žaliakalnis is an elderate in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas. Žaliakalnis is located north of the old town and the downtown area, between the Neris and Girstupis rivers...

 neighbourhood of Kaunas, in close proximity to the Kaunas Sports Hall

Kaunas Sports Hall

Kaunas Sports Hall , also known as the S. Darius and S. Girėnas Hall is the second largest arena of Kaunas, Lithuania. It is the first arena built in the residential Žaliakalnis neighbourhood of Kaunas specially for basketball in Europe and is referred to as a "Mecca of the Lithuanian basketball"....

 and the S. Darius and S. Girėnas Stadium, adjacent to the Ąžuolynas

Ažuolynas

Ąžuolynas is a public park in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas, in the Žaliakalnis neighbourhood. The park covers about 63 hectares and is the largest urban stand of mature oaks in Europe. Vydūnas Alley serves as the park's northern border. It is a popular recreational destination for the...

 Park.

It was established in 1934 as the Higher Courses of Physical Education. The Lithuanian National Institute of Physical Education was founded in 1945. The institute has been renamed to Lithuanian Academy of Physical Education in 1999. Since its foundation the institution has trained over 13 000 teachers of physical education, sports coaches and other qualified specialists.

The different University sports clubs are set up at the Academy: football clubs LKKA ir Teledema Kaunas

LKKA ir Teledema Kaunas

FK Atletas Kaunas is a Lithuanian football club from the city of Kaunas. The majority of the players is recruited from the Lithuanian Academy of Physical Education. LKKA ir Teledema earned promotion to the A Lyga, Lithuanias top football division, for the 2009 season after FBK Kaunas and Atlantas...

, basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 clubs Viktorija and Atletas, handball

Team handball

Handball is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each pass a ball to throw it into the goal of the other team...

 club LKKA–Žalgiris, weightlifting club Lokys, volleyball

Volleyball

Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...

 club Svaja, Greco-Roman wrestling

Greco-Roman wrestling

Greco-Roman wrestling is a style of wrestling that is practised worldwide. It was contested at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been included in every edition of the summer Olympics held since 1908. Two wrestlers are scored for their performance in three two-minute periods, which can...

 club Lokys, swimming

Swimming (sport)

Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...

 club Kiras, sports aerobics club Šėlsmas.

Alumni

• Virgilijus Alekna
  Virgilijus Alekna
  Virgilijus Alekna is a Lithuanian athlete who specialises in the discus throw. He won medals at the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Olympics, including two golds.-Career:...
  
  , Olympic discus throwing champion;
• Valdemaras Chomičius
  Valdemaras Chomicius
  Valdemaras Chomičius is a retired Lithuanian professional basketball player for the Soviet and Lithuanian national basketball team. Assistant coach on the Lithuanian national team...
  
  , Olympic basketball champion;
• Rimas Kurtinaitis
  Rimas Kurtinaitis
  Rimas Kurtinaitis is a basketball trainer, head coach of the VEF Riga, retired Soviet and Lithuanian basketball player who was a member of the USSR and Lithuanian national basketball teams. He played as a shooting guard and is the only non-NBA player to participate in the NBA All-Star Three Point...
  
  , Olympic basketball champion;
• Modestas Paulauskas
  Modestas Paulauskas
  Modestas Paulauskas is a retired Lithuanian basketball player who won gold with the Soviet basketball team in the 1972 Olympic basketball tournament. He also won a bronze medal with the team at the 1968 Summer Olympics. Paulauskas trained at VSS Žalgiris in Kaunas. He is known as one of the best...
  
  , Olympic basketball champion;
• Gintarė Scheidt
  Gintare Scheidt
  Gintarė Scheidt is an Olympic medal-winning dinghy sailor from Lithuania.Volungevičiūtė competed in the Olympic debut series for the women's single-handed dinghy class, the Laser Radial, in 2008....
  
  , Olympic silver medallist sailor
  Sailor
  A sailor, mariner, or seaman is a person who navigates water-borne vessels or assists in their operation, maintenance, or service. The term can apply to professional mariners, military personnel, and recreational sailors as well as a plethora of other uses...
  
  ;
• Birutė Šakickienė
  Birute Šakickiene
  Birutė Šakickienė is a Lithuanian rower who won an Olympic bronze medal in the Double Sculls event at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.-References:* . Retrieved 01/07/2010...
  
  , Olympic bronze medallist rower
  Rowing (sport)
  Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
  
  ;
• Algirdas Šocikas
  Algirdas Šocikas
  Algirdas Šocikas a retired Soviet Lithuanian boxer.He won twice in the European Amateur Boxing Championships in the Heavyweight division at Warsaw 1953 and West Berlin 1955...
  
  , European boxing champion.

External links

• Lithuanian Academy of Physical Education website