We have gathered a big number of true professionals who decided to volunteer their time to be mentors for young people who needed advice, encouragement or just a person to talk to about sports (and not only).
Young people met new professional, motivated people. They socialized and acquired contacts, while having a person to look up to. This allowed support and encouragement for youngsters to take on grassroots sports, as well as sharing of experiences, boosting their teamwork skills, fair play, tolerance and teaching them new sports techniques. Moreover, as a result of the Empowerment Through Sports Mentorship programme, social inclusion of the disadvantaged youth was facilitated.
Žygimantas Balsiukas 🇱🇹
For the past 3 years Žygimantas was elected the best field hockey player in Lithuania.
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He has been playing field hockey for the past 12 years and currently is the captain of the national team. Žygimantas is a motivated and passionate sportsman, has only just finished his studies, but through his experiences has gathered a broad range of knowledge and is excited to share it with his mentees.
Evaldas Šiškevičius 🇱🇹
Lithuanian professional road bicycle racer and mountain biker, who currently rides for UCI ProTeam in France.
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Evaldas has been involved in sports since he was 13 years old. E.Šiškevičius is a medalist of many national and international contests and has participated in the biggest bicycle race in the world.
Aida Gaižauskienė 🇱🇹
Lecturer at Lithuanian Sports University, department of Health, Physical and Social Education.
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Aida was a professional fencer and has been involved in sports for about 35 years now. For the past 3 years A.Gaižauskienė has volunteered at a girls socialization center and for 4 years at a children’s day-care center. Aida’s motto is “movement every day and curiosity”.
Marius Skripkaitis 🇱🇹
Marius is a swimmer, who for the past 6 years has been actively participating in competitions in Lithuania and abroad.
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Having a visual impairment has not stopped him from becoming a medalist at multiple competitions that he has taken part in. Currently, he is studying his masters at the Lithuanian Sports University. He’s a dedicated, generous person and wants to do his best to help others.
Birutė Statkevičienė 🇱🇹
Participant at Olympic games, professor and professional trainer.
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She works with blind and visually impaired swimmers. B. Statkevičienė took part in the Munich Olympic Games in 1972, she is a master of international class swimming sports, multiple Lithuanian and European swimming champion and record holder. B.Statkevičienė is the first coach of Kęstutis Skučas, who is the vice-champion of the Athens Paralympic Games. Now she trains many Lithuanian champions who have visual impairments. B.Statkevičienė has a lot of experience in organising sport competitions, entering them as a participant or judge.
Albertas Motiečius 🇱🇹
A multiple winner and record holder of the Lithuanian and European championship in powerlifting.
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For the past 10 years Albertas has been heavily involved in sports and is currently the general secretary of Lithuania Powerlifting federation. He is also very active in volunteering – Albertas coached children from disadvantaged backgrounds, participated in the Olympic day presenting the Powerlifting Federation. More to that, A.Motiečius has some experience in mentorship as well – several times he led seminars about healthy nutrition and lifestyle, career in sports.
Migle Dudenaitė 🇱🇹
A professional judo player for more than 15 years and currently judo coach.
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She is a member of the national team and competes in European and World Championships. She is a volunteer in the National Judo Association, where her job is to unite all the judo players in Lithuania and represent their opinion to higher organizations. Also, Migle has volunteered in different sport events with her university which gave her great experience, as well as new connections. Moreover, Mingle spent one year in Japan studying sports science and playing judo with people from all around the world and she comes from a family where sports are very important, mostly because her mother is a judo coach.
Darija Lauraitytė 🇱🇹
Student of Physical Activity and Lifestyle as well as a former professional karate fighter.
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In 2017, she won the bronze medal at the European Kyokushin Championships Kumite Junior Girls. Not only is Darija active in sports, she has a broad volunteering experience. She has participated in Erasmus+ projects, through which she volunteered at the juvenile correctional facility in Kaunas as well as the Refugee center in Rukla. More to that, Darija has also volunteered in many different sport events at her university (Lithuanian Sports University). Finally, together with her friend, Darija used to teach physical education to children with very high IQ’s.
Jūratė Jackytė 🇱🇹
Is a public health specialist. Jūratė has been practicing a healthy lifestyle and sports since 2013 when she started her studies and career in Public Health.
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Jūratė works with projects to promote community involvement into a healthy lifestyle, and for this reason she knows where to find the best activities, which are often free of charge. J.Jackytė has personally tried a lot of different activities, but one that really interests her is boxing, because it empowers and energizes her. Jūratė is a mentor/coordinator of healthy lifestyle promotion program for elderly people and WHO Healthy City Project Coordinator for Kaunas. Even though she has never worked with young people before, she believes that she has a wide range of knowledge to share and is very excited about this opportunity. Jūratė has been invited to share her experience on the national TV (“Good morning, Lithuania”) and other television programs.
Aistė Motiečė 🇱🇹
She has been playing sports for 8 years. For 3 years she was a runner, but currently is a professional powerlifter.
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Moreover, Aistė loves table tennis and has been playing and competing for about 7 years. A.Motiečė has volunteered in various events: Vilnius Danske Marathon in 2014, student fairs, for the past 4 years she is a national referee in Lithuanian Powerlifting federation. Aistė has experience in organizing sports events as well as lecturing children about healthy lifestyle and for 6 months, together with her husband, Aistė coached a group of students from antisocial families, conducted their workouts, made training plans and organized competitions. Aistė is a very busy person, always willing to try new things and challenging herself (she is currently on 76 out of 100 days chocolate-free challenge).
Audrius Knašas 🇱🇹
Professional volleyball player, who has been actively involved in sports for 8 years. He has experience in swimming, football, basketball and badminton.
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In 2018, Audrius and his partner Patrikas Stankevičius became the first Lithuanians to win medals in European U22 Beach Volleyball Championships. Audrius’ life goal is to be a good person. Sport has helped Audrius to set personal and professional priorities, find his potential. Audrius wants to share this experience, help others to find motivation and set their goals. More to that, Audrius is interested in philosophy, wants to discover what is the true meaning of life and the pursuit of happiness.
Vaida Žūsinaitė-Nekrošienė 🇱🇹
Lithuanian athlete, medium and long distance runner.
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She is a multiple Lithuanian champion and Olympian. Also, Vaida currently works as a coach and takes care of her one year old daughter. Vaida has been involved in sports for the past 15 years, and took part in the Rio Olympics marathon. Moreover, Vaita is a volunteer in the National Defence force, she likes arts and crafts!
Panagiotis-Georgios Moysidis 🇬🇷
A youth worker, mentor and trainer from Greece.
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Panagiotis has been active in sports since he was 10 years old, however, for the past 5 years, he has been intensively practicing martial arts. Panagiotis is a volunteer in Serres club for Unesco, the public library of Serres, Praxis, and the association for child protection. His main activities are teaching greek as a second/foreign language, organising educational and sport activities for youngsters, providing experiential workshops. Panagiotis describes himself as an active listener and supportive person, who is eager to help and work towards the good of the society.
Omar Ahmed Mohamed Ragab 🇪🇬 🇱🇹
Omar has been actively involved in sports for 16 years.
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He has broad experience in basketball – not only has he played basketball for many years, but taught children in Egypt and worked as a coach assistant in “Tornado” basketball school in Kaunas. Omar describes himself as a good advisor and listener, who has great self-motivation and discipline skills.
Socratis Chatziparaskevas 🇬🇷
A very active and supportive teacher in primary education.
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Football coach in a football academy from Greece. Socrates has been involved in sports since 2014, he coaches teams for tournaments and competes in the local football league.
Iveta Cirule 🇱🇻
A researcher and lecturer from Latvia, who has been involved in sports for the last 25 years.
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For the past 25 years she swims in the winter and goes on Nordic walks. Iveta regularly attends pilates, yoga and TRX training. She is a mentor for youth start up teams and adults in the university. Iveta’s main value is freedom to choose, she loves learning and teaching to motivate people to turn ideas into actions.
Dangiras Marcinkus 🇱🇹
Since he was a child, Dangiras has been involved in different sport activities.
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For the past 7 years he participated in individual sports, such as running and street gymnastics. Moreover, Dangiras has a broad volunteering experience – several times he volunteered with Lithuanian Sports University, LKF (Lithuanian basketball federation) taking part in sports events for kids and others. Dangiras likes to keep himself busy and does not like taking days off.
Aivaras Dukauskas 🇱🇹
Currently working as a physiotherapist, has been active in sports since he was 13 years old.
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He has played football, tried air pistol shooting, Judo, Muay Thai and boxing, and has been constantly training at the gym. Aivaras has participated in an international project in Estonia, went to FInland on the Erasmus program. Aivaras’ dream is to own a horse because of his great experience working with horses since he was a child.
Katerina Emmanouilidou 🇬🇷
Has been involved in sports for more than 40 years as member and agent of sports clubs.
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Katerina is a representative of the Greek sports federation, has more than 50 years of experience in leading youth organisations and sport clubs. Katerina is dynamic and practical, she has also been a mentor for many times, helping young people during different youth initiatives and projects on local and national level.
Estera Savič Bizjak 🇸🇮
Professional gymnastics and aerobics trainer.
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First Estera was a tool gymnast and then became a trainer, today she is a group fitness instructor who runs a sports club in Sevnica, Slovenija. In 40 years of her experience, Estera has taught and led many sports groups. Encouraging others to exercise and practice is what makes Estera happy. Estera has the longest experience of running aerobics training in Slovenia.
Laurynas Komža 🇱🇹
A hot air balloon pilot, instructor, technician.
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In 2019 he was recognized with the best sportsmanship award in Klaipeda City. More to that, in 2019 he came 7th in the world wrestling championship. Paulius has been wrestling for 14 years now and, mainly because of sports, has travelled all over Europe, participated in numerous competitions and became a medalist in world and European championships. More to that, Paulius Galkinas is a big fan of video games that help him relax after intense training sessions.
Rasa Baltienė 🇱🇹
A specialist in food training.
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For 20 years Rasa has been actively involved in judo, for 10 years she practiced it professionally and currently is responsible for the team of judo referees and organizes competitions. Rasa has also volunteered in leadership events, has been an HR mentee. Finally, R.Baltinienė is very ambitious – she always puts herself in those kinds of situations that lead her to new career directions.
Paulius Galkinas 🇱🇹
Is a lithuanian Greco-Roman
wrestler.
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In 2019 he was recognized with the best sportsmanship award in Klaipeda City. More to that, in 2019 he came 7th in the world wrestling championship. Paulius has been wrestling for 14 years now and, mainly because of sports, has travelled all over Europe, participated in numerous competitions and became a medalist in world and European championships. More to that, Paulius Galkinas is a big fan of video games that help him relax after intense training sessions.
Gia Amkoladze 🇱🇹
One of the Kendo pioneers of Kendo in Lithuania.
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Gia has been involved in sports since he was 5 years old, volunteered in multiple children camps, presented and taught the art of Kendo, successfully participated in many championships in Lithuania and abroad. Gia speaks 5 languages and works as the Sourcing Project Manager.
Nerijus Dunauskas 🇱🇹
Former professional footballer and FIFA referee.
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Nerijus Dunauskas is currently the president of the coach education association. He has a great experience in football and has been involved in sports for the past 30 years. Nerijus is a charismatic, self-confident sportsman, who is excited to share his broad knowledge with his future mentees.
Rudolfs Cirulis 🇱🇻
An architect-technician from Latvia.
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Rudolfs has been involved in sports since he was in elementary school. Rudolfs interests in football, cross-country skiing, mountain skiing, swimming and athletics. He is also a volunteer at the local NGO “Project Net” working as project manager assistant. Rufolfs is also Latvian Folk dancer and plays saxophone and theatre!
Marius Paškevičius 🇱🇹
A judo coach, who has been working in the field for the past 30 years.
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Marius has participated in various competitions – European, world championships, as well as the Olympics. He is also a medal winner in many of the competitions. Marius loves to push for the inner strength and always do something new that makes him grow.
Thanos Karampelousis 🇬🇷
Soccer academy coach and group trainer from Greece.
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He has been involved in sports for the past 20 years, is very ambitious and competitive. Currently, Αθανάσιος is also working as a security guard.
Jelena Ivanova 🇱🇹
For 12 years Jelena has practiced Nhat-Nam.
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Currently she is a martial arts Nhat-Nam and gymnastics coach. Jelena has successfully participated in championships nationally and abroad. In her free time, Jelena likes playing the piano and reads books about psychology.
Mindaugas Norbuta 🇱🇹
Has been involved in sports for most of his life.
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Ranging from running marathons to doing weightlifting and calisthenics. Mindaugas loves watching great movies and enjoys the company of interesting people. Currently he is working as a customer service specialist.
Zane Andersone 🇱🇻
Applied kinesiologist/ nutritionist/physiotherapist.
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Since Zane was 6 years old, she took part in many sport activities – figure skating, ballet, greco-roman wrestling, swimming track&fields, shooting. She also volunteers in different sports events, one of them – EuroBasket Women 2009, where she was in charge of doping control. Moreover, not only is Zane a successful athlete, she is also a sculptor!
Magdalena Kasparė 🇱🇹
Karate professional, coach and European Champion.
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Magdalena has been in the field for 14 years, and has been teaching kids for the past 7 years. She has 200 karate students (who she calls ‘her children’) and also a child of her own!
Viktorija Pečnikar Oblak 🇸🇮
A social worker and judo coach.
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Viktorija has been involved in sports for 30 years now, thus she has a very broad experience to share with her future mentees. She has also volunteered and mentored in Erasmus+ programs, as well as in Judo club in Ljubljana.
Francesca Tanca 🇷🇴
Active Romanian volleyball player, involved in sports since early days of primary school.
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Francesca has been part of one of the most prominent clubs of volleyball in the West of Romania, where she built her vast volleyball experience and became a key figure in her team. Even though she no longer plays at professional level, she is still actively involved in volleyball and in sports in general, lately being involved with training amateur teams for competitions nationwide. She is also involved in helping youngsters to organize volleyball tournaments.
Andrei Tudor Vilceanu 🇷🇴
Karate player and professional competitor for more than 7 years as a Junior.
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Andrei practiced karate since childhood, first as an amateur and then as a professional competitor in more than 20 competitions, where he achieved prestigious results as a representative of his Dojo and later on of the Bihor county in Romania. Later he got involved in numerous sport projects and guided other young people to find their calling in the world of sports.
Berci Ovidiu 🇷🇴
Professional handball player for 6 years actively participating in national competitions.
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Berci is the 2nd place winner in national competition for handball in Romania. He’s been doing sport from the age of 5, starting with 2 years of gimnastic followed by 2 years of table tennis and many more until he discovered handball. He is still in touch with his handball colleagues who nowadays play for Romanian teams and for the national team. Nowadays he is getting involved in many projects based on sports, trying to raise awareness of the missconduct in training and to have an impact on the world of sports.