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Jonas Mačiulis – one of the first basketball players that comes to mind when I think of combativeness, dedication and the desire to represent his country. Since 2007 The 36-year-old forward who plays for the representative Lithuanian national team is currently preparing for the last window of the European Championship, which will take place from 20 to 22 February. will take place in Vilnius.
Saturday at 7:30 pm Lithuania will face the Czech Republic, and on Monday at the same time they will enter a decisive fight with the Danish team.
The Kaunas resident, who has won 4 medals with the Lithuanian national team, is about to increase the pressure and is concentrating on his work on the field.
“We have 4 days to prepare, we already played the game on day 5. If we had to collect all the best, I think we would not be talking about the results that are now. When you play for the Lithuanian national team, you always feel responsible, you feel the importance of the match. The national team is very often something to lose is not tomorrow. In a championship, for example, you play 7 games and you know that each defeat can cost you a lot. The veterans of the team are used to that tension. You know you have we have to win it all, especially in this situation. We hope for the best, but we cannot predict everything in basketball, “said J.Mačiulis at a special Vilnius Basketball School (VKM) show.
When asked what a long-term member of the Lithuanian basketball team thinks about virtual fans in the arenas during this pandemic period, the athlete’s face is decorated with a wide smile:
“It just came to our notice then. As you pass by and on the big screen, you see a fan sitting on a tiled shoulder wearing a woolen hat, wondering what’s going on here now (laughs). Those dresses and reactions sometimes squeeze a smile. When the room is full, you don’t see such reactions, and when you throw a person on the big screen, then there is laughter. Personally, it amuses me that people are interested that they can at least participate in some way, see themselves and show themselves. It would definitely be more fun to play with real fans in a packed arena and I think that arena would be full. “
June 29 to July 4 The Lithuanian team in Kaunas will compete in the Olympic team, where they will look for a ticket to the Tokyo Olympics.
In the selection for the only entry to the Games, the Lithuanian team will fight against the teams of Slovenia, Poland, Angola, Korea and Venezuela. However, it is still unclear whether we will see the Lithuanian towers of Domantas Sabonis, Jonas Valančiūnas and the Slovenian super talent Lukas Dončičius in Kaunas.
J. Mačiulis, who played alongside L. Dončičius at Real Club de Madrid, admitted that in this case it does not depend much on the wishes of the basketball players themselves: and he wants to represent her. Since he lived and played in Spain between the ages of 13 and 14, he could choose to play for Spain or Slovenia. There was speculation about it, but when it came time to hold elections, he made it clear that he was Slovenian and that he would represent Slovenia. The next question is, can he come? As far as I’m concerned, the NBA will run until the end of July, so it’s not just Luka’s problem here. The question here is whether our Domantas and John and other NBA players who are important to their national teams will make it. I think the Olympic selection can be done through windows. The good thing is that at least the Euroleague players will be able to get together ”.
Asked about the rest of the dream, Kaunas, who won the Euroleague title, silver, bronze and bronze of the European Championships, does not doubt it: “My greatest wish and the icing on the cake of my career would be an Olympic medal. No ambiguities. That would be a dream and an aspiration, but before that you have to take many more steps: join the team, go through the national team, go to the Olympic Games and try to do something there. “
Speaking about next summer, J.Mačiulis also mentioned 3 × 3 basketball, which he successfully competed in last year. According to the basketball player, in certain circumstances, we could also see him in 3 × 3 Olympic basketball.
“With 3 × 3 basketball, there is such a thing that you cannot just come and participate. There will also be a selection at the end of May, you have to be included in the selection team. If all goes well, he shouldn’t have finished the season with AEK yet, it’s as if he couldn’t participate. There are many nuances that will develop throughout the season. I can’t really answer “yes” or “no” right now. Everything will be decided at the end of the season. It may also be the case that I get to be part of a 3 × 3 team, I go to the campus of the national team and, if anything, I have a plan B. Everything can be (smiles) ”.
Remembering the debut of the Lithuanian national team in 2007, it spreads a hilarious story. He received a call to the national team after a golden triumph in the University World Cup.
“I was sitting in Bangkok after the college game and we were going to celebrate (laughs). I got a message to fly to the Acropolis in Athens in a couple of hours. Previously, this was the last test before the European Championship. I flew from Bangkok to Athens for about 15 hours. I arrived without sleeping and being in space. I had to put on a shirt and I remember that it was a pretty tense match. They put me on the field and the rivals put pressure on Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Ramūnas Šiškauskas also pressed. I throw the ball and I need to kick it (laughs). I was young, like in space, not in my position, I often had to get that ball out (laugh). We went to the Eurocup, I didn’t play many minutes there, but we need energy from the young player in defense , to give the main players a few minutes of rest. That task, I think, was done quite well, and then all the generations of the team followed. “
J.Mačiulis admits that the life of a professional basketball player requires sacrifices, but he still enjoys being on the field.
“It just came to our attention then. You have to take care of your body. Until I was 24-25 years old, I didn’t even look at my body and the signals it sent. They read something, but you didn’t see anything and you went to play. Now you know the weaknesses of his body, what to do. Compared to the beginning of the race, many things have changed: leisure, food and sleep. Everything. For example, each season you start a little with other tests, searches. He wants the next season is always better, more successful, that he has less injuries and pain. You have to sacrifice extra time to take care of him, but not everyone can play basketball. It requires a lot of sacrifice, work, patience, will. – says Athens striker AEK – I enjoy basketball, every day I spend on the field. Last season was a success for both me and the team. This season so far has been like a roller coaster. I don’t think too much about the end of my career. Maybe it’s too much adored soon, everything is fine (smiling) so far.
J.Mačiulis spent his childhood at the Sabonis Basketball Center. Speaking about basketball school times, a member of the Lithuanian team highlights the importance of movement, time with friends and a proper coach:
“It just came to our knowledge then. I don’t know if coach Romualdas Petronis already had pedagogical training at that time, but he really knew how to work with children, his parents trusted him a lot, the coach knew how to play basketball. Our first trip, When we were ten years old, it was a train trip to Moscow. Now, rejecting the pandemic, I would say that a coach with the children flew to Italy would be nothing special. But we are talking about the wild in 1995, when you could leave and not return, but with twelve decades, John laughs – For all the children, in the first place, it was the simplest activity, game, sport, where we were able to spend time with friends. I played basketball not because I became an athlete. I played until I was 16- 17 because he had a job. And that’s it. We went to exercise to hit friends. Before training, while the weather was still good, we met in the Kaunas “Molas” shopping center, on Baršausko street. There was a stadium there, we ran there an hour before and after training (laughs). There was a lot of energy and we all wanted to train, we all wanted to play sports, but we didn’t think about the future and that day we were happy. You could say it was a real childhood. “
Speaking about the “Celebrating Freedom” children’s drawing and photography contest organized by ERM on the Day of Restoration of the State of Lithuania and on this occasion, J.Mačiulis said:
“For me, as a national team player who makes me proud when the Lithuanian anthem is played before international matches, these celebrations are really important. I am happy and congratulated all my compatriots. It is an honor for me to be Lithuanian and I am proud to be able to celebrate all the important dates for our country. It is fun to have such beautiful initiatives in which you can participate and express your citizenship. It is important to understand what freedom is and how important it is to cherish it. I wish everyone to continue their efforts to play basketball, so that there is an aspiration to play for the Lithuanian team, so that they never give up, because it is an honor to represent their country.
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