Lithuania’s top athletes were honoured Tuesday evening at the annual Lithuanian Sports Awards ceremony held at the Litexpo exhibition and congress centre in Vilnius.
A total of 10 awards were presented during the event, including five for Olympic sports, four for Paralympic sports and a special lifetime achievement honour.
Discus thrower Mykolas Alekna was named Sportsman of the Year, while swimmer Rūta Meilutytė was selected as Sportswoman of the Year. Meilutytė did not take the stage to accept her award.
Swimmer Edgaras Matakas and track and field athlete Oksana Dobrovolskaja were named Paralympians of the Year.
The men’s 3x3 basketball team that won the European championship – Marijus Užupis, Evaldas Džiaugys, Ignas Vaitkus and Aurelijus Pukelis – received the Team of the Year award.
Swimming coach Tadas Duškinas was named Olympic Coach of the Year, while Teresė Nekrošaitė earned the Paralympic Coach of the Year honour.
Rowers Povilas Juškevičius and Arnedas Kelmelis won the Breakthrough of the Year award in Olympic sports. Among Paralympic athletes, the award went to judoka Monika Aželionytė.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to former track and field athlete and coach Birutė Kalėdienė.
The Lithuanian Sports Awards are a prestigious annual event recognising the country’s top Olympic and Paralympic athletes, coaches and teams. Candidates for Olympic sport categories are nominated by sports federations and selected by the Lithuanian Sports Awards Council.
This year’s nominees were evaluated based on results achieved in Olympic and Paralympic competitions from November 1, 2024, through November 2025.
Last year’s Sportsmen/Sportswomen of the Year honours went to breakdancer Dominika Banevič and discus thrower Alekna in Olympic sports, and to discus thrower Dobrovolskaja and judoka Osvaldas Bareikis in Paralympic sports.
The Lithuanian Sports Awards have been held annually since 1994.
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