Vasso Karantasiou

Vasiliki ("Vasso") Karantasiou (born January 6, 1973 in Athens, Greece) is a female beach volleyball player from Greece, who won the gold medal at the 2005 European Championships in Moscow, Russia, partnering Vassiliki Arvaniti. She represented her native country at the 2004 Summer Olympics in her home town, after having competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics as well.

Karantasiou started competing on the SWATCH-FIVB World Tour in 1997 and played 64 of her first 68 international events with Efi Sfyri. Karantasiou and Sfyri placed 17th at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games and ninth at the 2001 World Championships in Klagenfurt, Austria. The Karantasiou/Sfyri partnership ranks fifth all-time in career FIVB starts with the pair posting a 136-132 match mark together with $247,610 in earnings (20th place).

While Karantasiou was named the Top Women’s Player for the 2005 season by the CEV, Arvaniti became the youngest woman (20 years, three months, 15 days) to win a SWATCH event. The pair upset top-ranked Juliana Felisberta and Larissa Franca of Brazil in the finals of the Norway Grand Slam in Stavanger.

Individual Awards

* "FIVB Top Women's Player 2005"

Playing partners

*Vassiliki Arvaniti
*Efthalia Koutroumanidou
*Efi Sfyri
*Stavroula Theodorou
*Rodi Ordoulidou

References

* [http://www.bvbinfo.com/player.asp?ID=1294 Vasso Karadassiou - Profile] at the Beach Volleyball Database