Road to Sochi: Lithuanian winter Olympic team

The 22nd winter Olympic Games will start at February sixth in Sochi, Russia. Lithuania will send to the games nine athletes who will take part in five different sports.

Lithuanian president, Dalia Grebuskaitė said On 19 December 2013 in Brussels, Belgium, that she won’t go to the Games due to Russia’s politics, but the Lithuanian athletes will come to get good results. In alpine skiing, Lithuania will sent two competitors; Rokas Zaveckas will race in men’s giant slalom and men’s slalom. Another participant in the alpine skiing is Ieva Januškevičiutė who will compete in women’s slalom.

Lithuania will have also two competitors in biathlon races. In males category, Lithuania will be presented by the 24-year old Tomas Kaukėnas while in the female category, the 30-year old Diana Rasimovičiūtė will race under the Lithuanian flag.

In cross – country skiing, Lithuania also will enjoy from two participants as wll. Vytautas Strolia will race in three events; men’s 15 km classical, men’s 30 km skiathlon, and men’s 50 km freestyle. To the women’s race, Lithuania will send Ingrida Ardišauskaite, who will race at the women’s 10 km classical race.

Lithuanian president Dalia Gribauskaitė had initially refused to give citizenship to 28-year old ice dance Deividas Stagniūnas’ partner, the 22-year old Izabella Tobias. Tobias who was born in New York, United states, recently represented Georgia. This would be second time that Deividas Stagniūnas would be unable to participate in the Olympic games due to his partner’s citizenship requests, hadn’t president decided to give citizenship to Tobias on December the second, 2013. Now Tobias and stagniūnas will be able to compete for the first time in the Olympic games. In 2013 World championships,Tobias and Stagniūnas qualified to Sochi Olympic games.

In short track speed skating, the 19-year old Agnė Sereikaitė will race on 500 meters, 1ooo meters, and 1500 meters races. Sereikaitė, during the 2013 season won bronze medal for Lithuania in Univirsiade games that took place in Italy and will hope to repeat the good performance in the Olympic games in Russia.

The national flag bearer in the opening ceremony will be the ice dancer Deividas Stragniūnas.