BASKETBALL SCHOOL "TORNADO" A basketball tornado broke out in the Viimsi Spring Cup 2019
26 – 28 April, 2019 five teams of Tornado BS participated in the international basketball Tournament in Viimsi, Estonia.
On early Thursday morning all delegation left Kaunas and successfully reached Viimsi in the evening. Teams accommodated in the modern school, had dinner and went to take a rest before tournament.
The best result achieved team 2006, lead by coach Modestas Gailiūnas. Boys won all games and came home with gold medals. “It was really nice trip, - said coach M. Gailiūnas. – It’s been long time since so many teams go to the tournament together. For my team, this tournament was like season’s finishing event, because we ended Lithuanian championship in March. Start of the season was very bad, later we drove in. So with this good mood we wanted to play as good as possible in the tournament in Estonia. We won the first place, so we did really good job. Team played very good in the first four games. They showed me what I want to see. All player on court bribg benefit, take the initiative themselves and do not look at others expecting they lead team to the victory. The last match became real final game. Some players were too excited about this game and did’t look like in all others games. Of course, the opponent was strong too. They prevented us from implementing many ideas, because they played very aggressively, on the verge of fouls. I'm glad that I managed to win the champions title! I would like to thank my parents who went to Estonia to support team and although we felt the same support from those who stayed in Lithuania. It's nice to go play when you feel that overwhelming support and faith. Kids after this tournament have already asked where we are going next time. We will surely go! We just don't have to rest on your laurels and keep working hard.”
Team 2007 – 2 came back to Lithuania with the bronze medals. “We came back from the tournament with a really good impression and a good mood, - said coach Tomas Rakauskas. - The tournament was organized perfectly. We lived, ate and played right next door, so we didn't have to travel anywhere far. Other teams also played side by side, so we were able to support other teams of our school. We had things to do besides basketball - we were by the sea and in the water park. The gyms we played left us the most impress. Our team played in a brand new gym. The third place also brought us a lot of joy, though we were so close to silver medals. We lost only by 2 points to team that won second place. For most kids, this was the very first medal on the basketball court and it will always be special. I wish this medal wasn’t the last and this would be an incentive for the boys to work harder and attend training responsibly”.
Boys 2008 went to the international basketball tournament for the first time and came back home with bronze medals. "It was our first trip and it's great that we came back with bronze medals," - said team coach M. Kvietkus. – “The first game we lost only in one point. It was really painful defeat. We made to much mistakes in the last quarter. As a result, we played the last match for third place with the same team and we succeeded in revenge. Kid was so happy after this victory, seems they won final game. WE also visited water park, spend few hours near Baltic sea. All participants rated the trip 10 points”.
Team 2009, formed only this year, also participated in this tournament. This was not only their first trip abroad, but also their first serious match as a team. “We won the third place and I’m happy about that, - said coach of the team Mantas Lauraitis. - If not for one bad game, we could reached a higher place. The tournament has brought a number of benefits – I saw the biggest flaws that will need to be corrected during training process. It also revealed what we are able to do on court. It was an exciting experience for the kids, they got to know their teammates and coach better. This trip was a great team building event”.
Team 2005 – 3 with coach Artūras Darašas came back home without medals. “The players who took part in the tournament got a lot of physical physical exertion and playing experience, - told coach Artūras Darašas. – We have been playing with very strong teams. During the leisure time we visited water park, Baltic sea. Tournament was really very good for players and it showed us to work more harder and responsibly attend basketball practices”.
Dainius Čiuprinskas, director of Tornado KM, who was on the trip together, was most impressed with the infrastructure: “This sports complex was opened only this season from private funds. Such a conditions of the town of 25 000 inhabitants are not very easy to find in Kaunas or Vilnius. Our second teams participated in this tournament, so I am delighted with the results, which did not shame Lithuanian basketball and gave the children joy when they won the first medals.”
