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Copyright
© 1958 Lithuanian
Students Association, Inc. September, 1958 Vol. 4, No. 3 Managing Editor P. V. Vygantas |
LITHUANIAN SPORTS' FESTIVAL
In the shadow of the 20th anniversary
of the First
Lithuanian National Olympics in Kaunas, Lithuania, the 8th Annual North
American Lithuanian Championships in track and field, soccer, swimming
and lawn tennis were held July 4-6 in New York City.
Over 200
athletes from various Lithuanian sport clubs in the United States and
Canada participated. The Games were officially opened by the Consul
General of Lithuania in New York, Mr. Jonas Budrys.
The
accomplishments in track and field and swimming were mostly moderate,
but some youngsters showed a certain promise for the future. In the
men's events Bronius Keturakis from Milwaukee, Wis., achieved an
unofficial record of the United States by walking 3 kilometers in
12:47.6. This splendid performance couldn't be recognized because there
was no official timekeeper from AAU on hand.
In the lawn tennis
competition Miss Veronika Ščukauskaitė, a veteran player known from
Free Lithuania days, showed again her unsurpassed supremacy. Meeting
only a token resistance from the younger rivals, she easily took the
women's singles and had a share in winning women's and mixed doubles.
Miss Ščukauskaite also was crowned as a champion with two gold medals
at the National Olympics in 1938.
The Games in New York were an
event where the younger Lithuanian generation have met and formed their
friendship among themselves. As such, the Games should be rated as
quite important.
A 40-page program, containing present
information and providing reminiscences from the National Olympics 20
years ago, was Issued.