Thursday 19 March 2020

Leopoldas Kepalas - National Lithuanain Basketball player

Leopoldas Alfonsas Kepalas, son of Jonas and Elena Von Kulberg, born 6 Sept 1912 in Petrograd.  He returned to Lithuania with his parents in 1924 and lived near Kamajai near Rokiškis.  In 1926 he attended the Šiauliai school and was active in scouts.  He then entered the technical school in Kaunas and upon graduation moved to Vilnius where he was the Director of a soap factory. 

1927 – 1930 Šiauliu sports club member
1928 – 1931 Šiauliai and Kaunas  Aušros men’s team
1932 – 1935 Kaunas sports club Grandis1932 – 1939 Lithuanian Basketball league
1936 – 1937 Lithuanian national Basketball team
1945 Hanau Lithuanian basketball team
1947 Bayreuth Basketball team

He was selected for the 1937 Lithuanian basketball team to play in Riga.  He continued playing sports wile in Germany.  A keen scout from a young age he continued this also as part of the Hanau camp scouts and later in Australia part of Melbourne Džiugo tuntas.
He arrived in Australia in 1948 and while in the Bonegilla Migrant camp organised a basketball team.

He married and was survived by a son and daughter. 

He died 12 February 1981. Interned in Springvale Cemetery.

Tuesday 3 March 2020

Leonas Baltrūnas – the father of Australian Lithuanian sports


Born 20 October 1914 in Riga to Lithuanian parents.  He graduated Riga High School in 1934 and then attended the Kaunas War School graduating in 1937 in Physical Education. He became interested in basketball in 1935 when he met with Lithuanian basketball coach from America, Konstantinas Savickas.  At 6 foot 4 his height was an advantage and by 1936 he became a member of the Lithuanian National basketball team.  During his four years on the team he played 17 games and scored 31 points.  He played on the Central Junior Sports Organization (CJSO) team.

From 1937 to 1944 he was the Head of the Lithuanian Ball Games Basketball and Volleyball Teams.  He prepared the Kaunas national Basketball teams for competition with the USSR in an eight city competition in 1941. 

Leonas became a member of the gold winning Lithuanian National Basketball team, European championships held in Riga 1937 and in Kaunas two years later in 1939.

Towards the end of 1944, he fled to Germany.  While residing in Displaced Persons camps, Leonas was still very much active in basketball, volleyball, athletics and swimming in the Čiurlionis Sports team.

He arrived in Australia on the General Stewart on 13 April 1949.

Leonas continued his sporting interest in Australia where he was a great volleyball player.  He is a life member of the Victorian Volleyball Association and was at one time coach of the Victorian Volleyball Squad and also president of the Victorian Volleyball Association. 

The Lithuanian Physical Education and Sports Governing body in Germany FASKAS appointed Leonas as its representative in Australia.  He contacted other Lithuanian sportsmen in Australia and united them into one national sporting body.  He organised the first Australian Lithuanian Sports festival held in Melbourne in 1950.  Leonas resigned as the representative of FASKAS in 1951 and three years later the Australian Lithuanian Physical development Association ALFAS was born. He instigated the first Lithuanian Sports Club in Australia, Melbourne Varpas. He was committed to the team and coached basketball and volleyball. In 1955 he was elected Chairman of the Australian Lithuanian Physical Education Association.

From 1949 to 1953 he was Victorian State team basketball coach and player in 1955 Australian National Basketball team coach.  Later he worked at a lecturer at Swinburne Technical School in Hawthorn, Physical Education and Department of Sports.

Was a member of the Čiurlionis Ensemble and in Australia, he and former members founded the Melbourne Lithuanian choir.

In retirement he edited a book on Lithuanian athletes in Australia 1949-1979.

He died on 20 April 1993 in Melbourne.

The songs my father sang

Paulius Rutenis (Rutkauskas) 19 March 1919 – 28 August 1983 Singer, soloist, actor, director, journalist. A man who was seen on and off ...