Sailors were brave to sail the Baltic Sea and beyond. In the interwar period, Klaipėda became the centre of blue-water sailing in Lithuania. Klaipėda Yacht Club founded in 1929 separated from Lithuanian Yacht Club in Kaunas and became an independent association in 1932. The Lithuanian Sailing Union founded in 1935 was based on its experience and principles of performance.  

Lithuanian sailors successfully participated in regattas in Latvia, Estonia, Finland and Sweden representing the country in the international sailing community. The year 1937 testifies to a solid inclusion in the ranks of sailing nations as the yacht “Žalčių karalienė” (meaning ‘Queen of Serpents’) won the cup in the first regatta around the island of Gotland. 

Members of other national youth organisations (e.g. “Santara”, meaning ‘concord’) joined the ranks of the sailors. The sailing sport was also considered one of the means to instil the maritime awareness in the members of the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union which supports the national spirit. In 1937, after the marine rifle squad started operating in Klaipėda, the largest interwar Lithuanian yacht “Šaulys” (meaning ‘a rifleman’) entered the port.