The U19 girls national team preparing for the European Championship inspected trophies

2024-05-30 13:00 © lff.lt

Currently, the Lithuanian U19 girls' national team, preparing for the European Championship taking place in Lithuania in July, visited the headquarters of the Lithuanian National Olympic Committee (LTOK) on Thursday.

The team was received by the LTOK president, an Olympic champion who became the patron of this championship.

During the meeting, leaders of the Lithuanian Football Federation (LFF) and LTOK exchanged symbolic gifts, and D. Gudzinevičiūtė shared memories from her sporting career with the girls and encouraged them not to give up, but to enjoy the championship and the great experience awaiting them.

"It was a very pleasant meeting with the president of the Lithuanian National Olympic Committee, Daina Gudzinevičiūtė, who became the patron of the upcoming girls' championship in Lithuania. This is a great appreciation for our football community and the team itself, which could hear the president's stories of her sporting career, emphasizing the need to always fight and never give up," said Edgaras Stankevičius, president of the Lithuanian Football Federation.

Meanwhile, LTOK president Daina Gudzinevičiūtė expressed her joy in nurturing and fostering girls' sports and highlighted that the championship will be an invaluable experience for every female footballer.

"We have been talking about girls' sports for a long time, hearing that one sports discipline or another is not for girls, that they should engage in other activities, although the truth is quite different. If you like sports - it cannot be divided into girls' or boys'. It is physical development, health, a hobby. I am very pleased that the Lithuanian Football Federation is responsibly looking at girls' sports, and I warmly welcome and enjoy the opportunity to be the patron of our team and the entire championship," she said.

The visit of the girls' national team to the LTOK headquarters is a very symbolic event, just after mentioning the centenary of the Olympic movement in Lithuania. It is symbolic and meaningful that the first Lithuanian athletes at the Olympics one hundred years ago were footballers.

There is always a desire to encourage and motivate girls, girls have every right to engage in the sports they enjoy, and that's why we want to support and encourage them.

I believe that such support is important, to encourage, to show that perseverance is one of the main qualities. That Olympic principle, which everyone loves to quote, that it is important not to win, but to participate, has another side - it is important to overcome oneself. So I sincerely wish the girls to overcome themselves, because sports are certainly not easy, but it gives great satisfaction," said the former Olympian of our country.

Currently, the official championship trophy is also located at the LTOK headquarters.

"Such support is always very important, the team feels it and we are very happy about it. It pushes us forward, representing Lithuania is an honor for the whole team, so such a demonstration of support is something wonderful.

We will play against very strong teams, and for each player it is a great opportunity to show themselves, it will be a high-level tournament where we can show that we can also play football," shared the thoughts of the captain of the girls' national team, Karolina Jasaitytė.

Remember, the championship will take place in Kaunas, Marijampolė, and Jonava from July 14-27. The Lithuanian team will compete in Group A, with all their matches taking place at the Kaunas Darius and Girėnas Stadium. Lithuania's opponents in the group stage will be teams from England, Serbia, and France.

Also, ticket sales are already underway for all championship matches. You can purchase tickets by clicking here.