The knowledge about the Olympic movement is very important - it is included in the study programmes of many countries. Olympism has a lot of experience. Regional Olympic academies are being founded and they popularize the Olympic ideals first of all among pupils and other people, as well. The theoretical knowledge about the Olympic movement for children and youth envisage three main study directions

Lietuvos olimpinė akademija (LOA) šiais metais mini 35-ąsias veiklos metines. Įkurta 1989 m. spalio 27 d., dar prieš Lietuvos nepriklausomybės atkūrimą, LOA tapo svarbia organizacija, puoselėjančia olimpines idėjas, skatinančia vaikų ir jaunimo fizinį ir dvasinį tobulėjimą bei skleidžianti mokslines olimpinio judėjimo žinias. Pirmuoju LOA prezidentu buvo išrinktas doc. dr. V. Jasiūnas, kuris pabrėžė demokratinį Akademijos veiklos pagrindą. Ilgus metus LOA vadovavo prof. habil. dr. P. Karoblis, po to doc. dr. A. Poviliūnas, kurių inicijuoti darbai ženkliai prisidėjo prie LOA tarptautinio bendradarbiavimo ir olimpinio švietimo sklaidos Lietuvoje. Šiandien LOA tęsia savo veiklą, rengia mokslinius tyrimus, projektus bei skatina jaunimo integralų fizinių ir dvasinių galių puoselėjimą.

Aplinkos problemos kelia didžiulį susirūpinimą visam pasauliui, nes turi įtakos kiekvieno iš mūsų kasdieniniam gyvenimui. Sportas kaip pramoga ir fizinis ugdymas dabar yra neatskiriama visuomenės kultūros dalis. Iš tikrųjų sportas veikia aplinką taip, kaip aplinka tiesiogiai veikia sportą. Tarptautinis olimpinis komitetas (TOK), pasitelkęs olimpinį sąjūdį ir gausius savanorius, stengiasi padėti spręsti tokias tarptautines problemas kaip aplinkos apsauga, jos paveldas ir taika. TOK šiandien yra pasiryžęs suvaidinti savo vaidmenį ilgalaikėje plėtroje ir įvykdyti savo visuomeninę pareigą įnešdamas indėlį per savo pagrindinę veiklos sritį – sportą, kuris yra galinga mokymo priemonė ir universali kalba. Per sportą galima sudominti žmones gamtos grožiu ir taip ugdyti juos bei informuoti apie aplinkos degradavimo pavojų. Šia prasme pasaulinė ir vietinė aplinka yra natūralus partneris olimpiniams idealams ir olimpiniam sąjūdžiui apskritai. Aplinka šiandien yra trečia atrama olimpizmui, greta sporto ir kultūros. [...]

The article emphasizes the need of Olympic education as the program related to health, environment, intercultural awareness and young people’s social behaviour in school curriculum. More widely, a demand is to link the school to the local community and its institutions by emphasizing the humanistic and ethical dimensions of Olympism. Concrete programs of Olympic education that were created by separate Olympic Games Organizing Committees are being represented in this article. These programs go with their aims such as initiating a strong volunteering movement that would cover all the facets of young people social life, promoting Olympic ideal, encouraging to explore other cultures, etc. The great part of this paper represents a survey that reveals problems of implementation of Olympic education programs within the Olympic Movement and stages proposals for solving them. The results of research proved that Olympic education is accepted as necessary in most countries that implemented such programs. Olympic education programs are growing into an important activity with a strong impact on a range of permanent aspects of global education. The school should draw upon this wealth of knowledge, experience and representations that students of all ages bring from their life, their family, the environment in which they live, which should be combined with those included in the curriculum. Although Olympic education programs contribute to changes that improve school’s efficiency, many of these programs cannot be integrated into educational system. This is due to a series of problems arising during their implementation in the educational process. Finding ways of integrating the innovations offered by Olympic education programs in education will require mobilization and allowance their inclusion in school system of each country. If this is not guaranteed, then Olympic education programs will be implemented outside the framework of national educational institutions, on a limited scale and remain without proper recognition on the sidelines of the curriculum.

This article reviews the annual activities of Lithuanian Olympic Academy (LOA) for the year 2008, the problems, advantages and perspectives of Olympic education are analysed too. Olympic education is open to everybody; the main humanistic goal of it is to form a need for people to do sports for life, to enrich their existence. The propagated Olympism conception of Olympic education admits very many values which are common to all countries but each of them can find ideas that would be the most important to its culture, sport, traditions, and future. LOA has these activity directions at focus: pupils‘ and students‘ Olympic education (underlying direction); Olympic sport at higher education institutions; the preservation problems of Lithuania sport heritage; scientific evaluation of Olympic Games results; further trends of working and collaboration. The main task is to involve schoolchildren and students into creative activity aiming to promote healthy lifestyle, increase and develop pupils‘ and students‘ knowledge about Olympic movement, Olympic culture, its humanistic ideas, ideals and values that influence youngsters’ behaviour; to organize conferences, seminars, create and implement new projects aiming to develop pedagogues’ competence. Lithuanian students always have been the most active part of sporting society. Representatives of higher education schools are very active in participating at the sessions of International Olympic Academy where Olympic education in universities is always emphasized, they are encouraged to look for new forms of students’ sport and Olympic education development, to create new projects, to enhance motivation for sport and for the universities all over a world to communicate in closer ways.[...]

The importance of Olympic Education had grown consistently since the concept was first mentioned in International Olympic Academy’s session in 1970s. What is more, the establishment and development of National Olympic Academies is still growing worldwide. Lithuanian National Olympic Academy as one of the leaders among the 143 National Olympic Academies, in twenty years of existence has reached a lot of goals, yet more are to be reached in the future. The aim of the work was to analyze the system of Olympic Education in Lithuania by presenting its background, current situation and potential development. Lithuania can be characterized as an active member of the Olympic Movement. Since the establishment of the National Olympic Committee in 1924 and re-establishment in 1988, Lithuanian athletes have proudly represented the country in International sport events, NOC has been working to ensure best conditions for athletes, also cooperated with NOA towards organization of conferences, seminars and lectures in order to ensure the overall development and spread of Olympism and Olympic Movement in the country. Olympic Education program for formal education institutions was created in the year 2000 and is one of the successful projects that are being implemented in Lithuania. 82 schools are voluntarily participating in Children and Youth Olympic Education project. The existence of the project was extended until 2015 by the organizing institutions. Formal education institutions actively involve themselves into Olympic Education and care to spread Olympic ideals to the pupils. In the future number of schools involved should grow up to 200 and sport schools, summer training camps could become a part of the project. As a part of project management theory internal evaluation is implemented by schools, external evaluation should be established for further improvements.

Pasikliaudamas principais, kurie yra išdėstyti P. de Kuberteno (P. de Coubertin) tekstuose (24 knygos, 50 brošiūrų, 1150 straipsnių), ir skirdamas daugiausia dėmesio H. Lenko (Hans Lenk), N. Nissiočio (Nocolaos Nissiotis) ir O. Grupės (Ommo Grupe) tyrimams, autorius stengiasi apibūdinti išskirtinius bruožus, kuriuos turėtų turėti XXI amžiaus „olimpiniai žmonės“. [...]

11th of December, 2013 is dedicated to commemorate the re-establishment of Lithuanian National Olympic Committee (LNOC) as it happened 25 years ago. During this period Olympians of Lithuania did anchor themselves among the supreme nations worldwide that participate in Olympic Movement, and Lithuania sport professionals are valued by Olympic organizations of European as well as on the world level. These sport persons are frequently asked to become members in different commissions and leading organizations. However, looking at historical perspective, to re-establish Lithuanian National Olympic Committee on the evening of 11th December, 1988 was easier than to gain the recognition by IOC and be rejoined into the Olympic family. Each of the three Baltic States endeavoured together for this to become a reality. 18th September, 1991 was the day when International Olympic Committee session had welcomed the Olympic Committees of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia (de facto) to re-join the Olympic family and participate in the Olympic Games. Though, recognition de jure in rush (under the written IOC members’ agreement) was decreed on 11th November, 1991, but on this historical date – 18th September – LNOC was the very first Lithuanian organization to be officially accredited by international organization. Lithuanian Olympic sport represents gathered immeasurable experience, deep traditions, also is a part of the modern culture and the memory of the nation. Today sport, Olympism, and Olympic education inspire new thoughts, fresh ideas, striving for innovations, persistent willingness to learn. We are being led into the Olympic sport level by scientific researches, historically analysed sport facts, arguments, and, of course, scientific approach.

Olympic movement since the very first Lithuanian athletes’ entering sport competitions is rich with various turning points, periods, and dates. Sport of independent Lithuania started in 1918, after the reestablishment of Lithuania State, and, before 1940 had started, the genuine sport capital was gathered that was the basis for further sport development. Physical education, sport organization, and its propaganda reached peak at that time when the first sport organization of independent Lithuania – Lithuanian Sports Union – was founded in 1919 (one of the founders was Stepas Garbačiauskas – eminent sport organizer, Lithuanian sport initiator) and in 1922 Lithuanian Sports League was established as the supreme physical education and sport institution in Lithuania that represented the country and dealt with sport in international organizations. Namely Lithuanian Sports League (LSL) became competent National Olympic Committee that communicated to International Olympic Committee and the Olympic Games organizing committees after it sent athletes to participate in Paris (1924) and Sankt Moritz (Swiss) Winter Olympics and Amsterdam (1928) Olympic Games. Year 1932 was the focus of sport movement reform: Physical Education Law was adopted, the management of sports movement was delegated to the Physical Education Palace (PEP) under the Ministry of Education. Distinctive physical education system did revitalize Lithuanian Sport Movement (the 1st Lithuanian National Olympiad was organized in 1938, Lithuanian shooters won silver and bronze medals in 1937 and 1939 at the World championships, basketball players became European champions in 1937 and 1939, vice-champions – in 1938, international victories of table tennis players and high sport results of other athletes were eminent at that time as well). Sport level of our country gained international recognition. Historic break started in 1940, when Lithuania was occupied and the essence of Lithuanian sport was destroyed, the break on the world context was 1951, when, in 46th session of International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Vienna, Olympic organizations of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia were deleted from its list and USSR became their representative. Even though, in the Olympic Games during the period 1952–1988 Lithuanian athletes could not represent their country, they managed to achieve important results as included to USSR teams. Lithuanian National Olympic Committee (LNOC) was re-established in congress with sport federations, organizations and public representatives on 11 December, 1988. Executive Committee of IOC in its meeting in Berlin on 18 September, 1991 announced re-establishment of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia Olympic committees rights. LNOC de jure was recognized on 11 November, 1991 and very soon, on February 1992, after forced 64 years break, Lithuanian athletes participated in Albertville Winter Olympic Games and in July – in XXV Barcelona Games. Lithuanian athletes won six gold, five silver, and ten bronze medals. The most successful Olympic games for Lithuania through the whole history was in London (five – two gold, one silver, and two bronze – medals were won, 12 more athletes and national basketball team took 4-8 places, unofficially Lithuania was 34th among other countries). However, London Games are already a history and Rio de Janeiro Olympic clock is ticking now. Sport history has to be written further and filled in with future Olympic Games winnings.

This paper provides an overview of Baron Pierre de Coubertin (1863-1937) ideological intentions and his assumptions to the history of the Olympic Movement. The Olympic Ideas have been conceived as an educational task. Ideas have produced the growing influence on the 19th century, namely in France. The new generation was destined to find the new international coexistence, cooperation and competition techniques. These techniques have had to face enormous challenges in the 20th century. The challenges were dangerous and inhuman, because of technical progress, infinitely growing cities and dehumanized massive movements. It was very necessary to find such a form which may transform mass public life not only to the war. Two world wars were not predicted, although happily enough the Olympic movement overcame the destructions of both. The universalism of Olympic ideas deserved a special relay. The Olympic movement and the Olympic Games are a real alternative to destruction, so – this is a new form of universalism. It was equivalent to the Catholic Church universalism. History has testified that the two ideologies of universalism found a way of coexistence. At the same time some ideas did not survive. In 1992, at Barcelona’s XXV Olympic Games the Olympic movement embraced commerce and professional sports. Another idea, which saw the fiasco at the very beginning of Olympic, was P. de Coubertin reluctance to admit the women into the Games.