BC VIČI-Aistės Kaunas was a Lithuanian women's basketball club based in Kaunas. Before ceasing operations due to financial difficulties,[1] the team was the most titled women's basketball club in Lithuania.
History
editThe team, originally called "Kibirkštis" (transl. "Spark"), was founded in Vilnius in 1961 as homage to a nearby electrical welding equipment plant. Its first coach was Algis Gedminas, a no-nonsense disciplinarian who had previously taught at a Moldavian pedagogical institute. Under Gedminas's direction, Kibirkštis quickly became a powerhouse in the Soviet Lithuanian women's basketball league, winning back-to-back championships in the late 1960s and early 1970s, as well as several bronze medals in the top-tier Soviet basketball tournament. The team was led by women who represented Soviet Union national team in various European Championships and Olympic Tournaments, including Larisa Vinčaitė, Angelė Jankūnaitė-Rupšienė and Vida Šulskytė-Beselienė.
After Lithuania's restoration of independence, the team continued to dominate in the Lithuanian basketball championship, attracting local talent such as Aneta Kaušaitė and Jurgita Štreimikytė-Virbickienė (the first two Lithuanian players in the WNBA) and international talent alike. During this transitionary period, Kibirkštis's name changed to "Ryšininkas-Šviesa" in 1990, "Telerina" in 1992, "Lietuvos Telekomas" in 1995 and "TEO" in 2006. The team also established a subsidiary club "Lintel-118" around 2000, which tailored to youth development and competed in LMKL and LMKAL until its folding in 2006.[2] One notable alumna is Gintarė Petronytė, a two-time EuroCup Women champion who started her career with "Lintel-118" in 2005.
Telekomas reached unprecedented heights in the 2004-05 and 2005-06 season, when, headed by Algirdas Paulauskas, the team won the LMKL, BWBL tournaments and reached the semifinal in the top-tier EuroLeague Women tournament. WNBA All-Star and Champion Katie Douglas, European Basketball Champion Jurgita Štreimikytė and two-time EuroLeague bronze medalist Sandra Linkevičienė formed this team’s core.
In 2010, TEO relocated to Kaunas and was renamed "VIČI-Aistės". After two successful seasons, the team dissolved due to a lack of sponsorship.
Titles
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Notable players
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Larisa Vinčaitė (1963–1973)- Angelė Jankūnaitė-Rupšienė (1968–1984)
- Vida Šulskytė-Beselienė (1973–1988)
- Aneta Kaušaitė (1988–1993)
- Jurgita Štreimikytė-Virbickienė (1990–1993; 2004–2005; 2005–2010)
- Irena Baranauskaitė-Vizbarienė (1995–2007)
- Aušra Bimbaitė (2001–2009; 2010–2011)
- Eglė Šulčiūtė (2001–2003; 2004–2007)
- Gintarė Petronytė (2005–2009)
- Sandra Valužytė-Linkevičienė (1999–2008; 2011)
- Rima Vadapalaitė-Valentienė (1998–2009; 2010–2012)
Ieva Kubliņa (2004–2006)
Katie Douglas (2004–2007)
Yelena Leuchanka (2006–2008)
Milica Dabović (2007)- Nykesha Sales (2007–2008)
- Crystal Langhorne (2008–2009)
- Lindsey Harding (2009–2010)
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Quanitra Hollingsworth (2010–2011) 
Chioma Nnamaka (2009–2010)
Head coaches
edit- Algis Gedminas (1961–1981)
- Valentinas Kanapkis (1981–1986)
- Heino Lill (1988–1989)
- Valentinas Kanapkis (1994–1997)
- Algirdas Budėnas (1998–2001)
- Algirdas Paulauskas (2001–2007)
- Rūtenis Paulauskas (2007–2009)
- Mantas Šernius (2010–2012)
References
edit- ^ "Moterų Eurolyga – be Lietuvos klubų". basketnews.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 2020-06-01.
- ^ "LMKL pirmenybėse žais Latvijos čempionės". kauno.diena.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 2020-06-03.