Ambassador: I am proud that Lithuanian coaches are contributing to important sporting achievements in Azerbaijan - INTERVIEW
Baku, May 6, AZERTAC
Kęstutis Vaškelevičius, Lithuania’s Ambassador to Azerbaijan, gave an interview to AZERTAC. He spoke about his compatriots who led the “Sabah” football and basketball teams to Azerbaijani championship titles in their respective leagues.
- The dominance of Lithuanian coaches in Azerbaijan has been noticeable in recent years. What can you say about this?
- I am truly proud that Lithuanian coaches are contributing to important sporting achievements in Azerbaijan and, more broadly, to the development of team sports here. We can clearly see the results—a growing public interest in sports, a growing fan base, and increasing visibility of both basketball and football. At the same time, Azerbaijan is gaining more attention in Lithuania and across Europe. This season alone, Sabah BC and Sabah FC have seven Lithuanian coaches, including both head coaches—Olympic champion and Olympic bronze medal winner in basketball Rimas Kurtinaitis, and Valdas Dambrauskas, who has won league titles in several European countries.
More broadly, we are witnessing a kind of renaissance of team sports in Azerbaijan across many disciplines. Here, I would also highlight the truly outstanding work by the head coach of Qarabag FK, Gurban Gurbanov, and the consistent efforts of the basketball, football, gymnastics, and other national federations. All this hard and systematic work and international collaboration, at the end of the day, bring tangible results.
- Did you attend the arenas to watch the games of both teams during the season?
- Yes, I attended many matches throughout the season, often with my family and together with the Lithuanian community. On several occasions, we also organized a group of ambassadors and diplomats from other European countries and the USA to watch the games. It was not only about sports, but also about building connections and cheering for Azerbaijani sports.
- In your opinion, who were the best players of both teams this season? Are there any names you would single out?
- Being just a sports fan, I would rather not risk naming the best players. I would prefer to leave such evaluations to the experts. However, I would like to highlight the fighting spirit shown by Azerbaijani basketball player Kamran Mammadov yesterday, during the last final game, Sabah against Absheron Lions. Moments like these—full of determination and skill—are exactly what make sports so engaging for fans. Overall, many players delivered memorable performances throughout the season.
- What is your level of interest in other sports?
- I myself love both playing and watching sports. For a Lithuanian, basketball comes quite naturally, but I also follow and support a wide range of sports. Here in Azerbaijan, I have attended basketball and football matches, as well as events featuring gymnastics and rowing teams from Lithuania that competed in Azerbaijan.
It is also worth noting that the Lithuanian and Azerbaijani national football teams are in the same UEFA Nations League group. We will meet in September and in October, and I very much look forward to seeing many football fans in the stadium in Baku.
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