Raimundas Čivilis (24 November 1959 – 27 November 2000) was a
Lithuanian basketball player, known for his career in
Žalgiris Kaunas from 1977 to 1988.
Life
Born in
Panevėžys
Panevėžys (; Latin: ''Panevezen''; pl, Poniewież; yi, פּאָנעװעזש, ''Ponevezh''; see also other names) is the fifth largest city in Lithuania. As of 2011, it occupied with 113,653 inhabitants. As defined by Eurostat, the population ...
in 1959, Čivilis became a member of Žalgiris team in 1977. His early career, however, was not successful, until
Vladas Garastas
Vladas Garastas (born February 2, 1932 in Linkuva) is a former Lithuanian professional basketball coach and the former president of the Lithuanian Basketball Federation.
Coaching career
Before retirement, he coached the Soviet Union national te ...
took the head coach's post in 1979. Garastas immediately took a liking in him and put him in the starting five. He naturally became a leader, and stayed one even after
Arvydas Sabonis
Arvydas Romas Sabonis (; born December 19, 1964) is a Lithuanian former professional basketball player and businessman. Recognized as one of the best European players of all time, he won the Euroscar six times and the Mr. Europa Award twice. He ...
came to the team in 1981. In a match in 1986, when Žalgiris was playing against
Petrović's Cibona Zagreb
Košarkaški klub Cibona, commonly referred to as Cibona Zagreb or simply Cibona, is a men's professional basketball club based in Zagreb, Croatia. The club is a founding member and shareholder of the Adriatic Basketball Association, and competes ...
, and Sabonis fouled out, Čivilis took over and led his team to defeat Cibona 94:91.
In 1988, he left Žalgiris, played briefly for a
Slovak basketball club, and retired soon afterwards. In 2000, Čivilis died of
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
.
External links
Raimundas Čivilis
1959 births
2000 deaths
Lithuanian men's basketball players
Sportspeople from Panevėžys
20th-century deaths from tuberculosis
Place of death missing
BC Lietkabelis players
Tuberculosis deaths in Lithuania
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