Physical Culture Palace
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54°53′54″N 23°56′4″E / 54.89833°N 23.93444°E
Physical Culture Palace (Lithuanian: Kūno kultūros rūmai or Fiziško auklėjimo rūmai) was the first sports governing body in Lithuania. It acted from 1932 to 1940 in Ąžuolynas of Kaunas, Lithuania.[1][2][3]
The building complex was designed by architect Vytautas Landsbergis-Žemkalnis.[4] The initial project of the building complex included a very modern swimming pool, which would have been lit from below and with a retractable roof, however due to the financial consequences of the Great Depression the project was abandoned.[4] In 1933, a simplified project of the building complex was prepared and built in 1933–1934.[4]
The Physical Culture Palace was officially opened on 10 October 1934.[5] The building had a spacious sports hall with 200 seats, designed and built for tennis.[5] To increase grip for tennis players, the hall had expensive cork floor installed, which cost over 30,000 LTL (over $5,000) when average teacher salary at the time was around 350–500 LTL and 150–180 LTL for an ordinary worker.[5][6] Being suitable for indoor basketball, the Hall hosted its first game on 16 November 1934, and soon became the main center for basketball in Lithuania events.[5]
Currently the building serves as a Lithuanian Sports University central palace.[7][8]
