Who says the capital's government has little ambition? Especially when they move... the seaside beach to Lukiškės Square. The people of Klaipėda observe this situation and wonder why the people of Vilnius try to copy what cannot be copied, and do not try to take over what could be useful for the people of the capital. Yes, it is about the two cities' different sports visions and reforms.
Back in June, Vilnius authorities announced changes in sports, namely a new gym reservation system. "There will be no lease agreements based on behind-the-scenes agreements, and all the capital's educational institutions will play by the same rules," the capital's vice mayor declared in a public announcement. They only kept silent about the fact that this well-intentioned decision changes some behind-the-scenes agreements, unfortunately, but changes others. Namely, with the right of priority for budgetary institutions, thus eliminating the private sports schools and clubs that contribute to the sports education of children to a large extent.
Vilnius city municipality this discriminatory moment was called competition. But is it possible to compete with unequal rights when you get the most unfavorable times for training and gyms in the most remote areas of the city? This question and many others, which were raised by the crowd of sports children and coaches who gathered near the municipality to picket, made the capital's authorities take a step back and turn their heads on how to improve sports-related matters.
But will Vilnius be able to cope with the problems of sports infrastructure? Only time will tell, the ability of city leaders to look beyond their holdings and, of course, the recognition that there is no need to reinvent the wheel in this area, because it has already been invented and it rides great… Klaipėda. Yes, it is the port city that has implemented an exemplary sports reform, from which foreigners learn. And the rest of Lithuania could also learn.
A centralized gym reservation system has been operating in Klaipėda for a long time. Only unlike what was conceived in Vilnius, it works together with other implemented changes, and not separately by itself. We agree that this element is not bad in itself, but it is one cog in the overall system - the whole mechanism, with smaller and larger parts, must work in order to achieve results.
What system is offered to Vilnius Klaipeda? First of all, next to the budgetary institutions financed by the municipality, introduce a basket for a child who does sports for private sports schools and clubs. It does not require any extra money at all. It is only necessary to review the sports in budgetary institutions and destroy those that do not ensure the so-called pyramid - initial training, advanced training and higher sportsmanship. Painful? No, because it is only a matter of time before a sport that does not guarantee sports continuity will die.
Seven years ago, after the sports reform in Klaipėda started, 11 unpromising sports had to be abandoned, and their finances went to the basket of a child who plays sports. And the situation is really not so sad: during those years, some sports, such as table tennis, rugby or wrestling, were reborn and strengthened, competition and very clear criteria for private sports schools and clubs claiming basketball money for an athletic child appeared.
If we look at the current situation of children playing sports in Klaipėda, we can see an obvious change: the number of people who want to play sports has increased by a third, and all children playing sports are divided equally between budget institutions and private schools or sports clubs. And most importantly, the motivational system created together with the competition has increased the responsibility of coaches not to throw a child who plays sports into the street, on the contrary, to try to keep him interested in sports for as long as possible, so that he wants to achieve results and follow the path of a healthy lifestyle.
The success of the basket model for a child who plays sports has also been evaluated on a national scale. After seeing how well it works, the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports quickly adopted it from Klaipėda and adapted it for informal education of children. By the way, the basket of non-formal education for children is functioning perfectly to this day, and children and parents value it as one of the most successful tools of non-formal education.
Together with the sports child's basket, a centralized gym reservation system arrived in Klaipėda. Is it the same as the Vilnius government tried to introduce? Not exactly. Yes, it also works virtually and here you can see the full availability of gyms and book the times you want. But when it comes to reservations, no school has priority: all budget and private sports schools declare their needs every year by September, sign long-term contracts, so the times and places they need are coordinated and visible on a common platform. And the rest of the free time is dedicated to the needs of the townspeople - everyone who wants to play basketball, football, tennis, etc.
The implemented sports reform in Klaipėda helped to solve another problem that is sensitive to all Lithuanian sports, related to the issues of high sports excellence. In our country, this problem seems to have been solved, but not finished. Two sports gymnasiums were established in Šiauliai and Panevėžys (about whose problems we can talk a lot more), but the children who are a little short of getting into the Olympic reserve and receiving scholarships were forgotten. Sometimes it's just a matter of years - you just have to give them a chance to get to the next level. Of course, the easiest way is to leave such children on the street, but Klaipėda city municipality has introduced a sports scholarship system and in this way gives several tens of promising future athletes the opportunity to win future victories.
By the way, the sports reform in Klaipėda has also affected general education schools - there are sports classes in more than one gymnasium and pro-gymnasium, where suitable conditions for training have been created, and proper nutrition for future athletes has been taken care of.
If you ask Klaipėda residents if this is the end, you would be surprised to learn that they have no intention of stopping. The government of Klaipėda annually reviews and controls budgetary sports institutions, changes and improves the activities of some of them, destroys others, establishes public institutions, audits "increasing" positions, etc. Because the people of Klaipėda look at these changes as permanent, continuous work, which they work knowingly. , what you want, and with great dedication and responsibility.
It is this kind of rational and consistent approach and well-thought-out sports reform that is missing in Vilnius. And you need so little: just get up from the deckchairs of the failed Lukiškiau Square beach project and come to a real Lithuanian seaside for a while. The people of Klaipėda will be happy to share their successful experience in pursuit of victories in the entire field of Lithuanian sports - there will be no need to engage in dubious changes, but simply implement what has been tried and really works well.
