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For 2004
Rhodes Open:
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latest
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27/04/2004 23:22 +0300
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Sandra Pires hits high above Adriana Behar in the all-Brazilian
final at Rhodes 2003.
Photo:
ActionImages |
ANA PAULA & SANDRA
PIRES
CLIMB TO THE TOP OF THE WORLD!
Playing for the
first time together, and having only trained together for two days in
Brazil before coming to Greece, Ana Paula and Sandra Pires staged an
inspired comeback from 0-1 to defeat their compatriots Adriana Behar and
Shelda 2-1 (21-23, 21-19, 15-12) and win the gold medal at the Hellas
Women's Open of the 2003 Swatch-FIVB World Tour. The winning team earned
$22,000, plus 300 ranking points that will count towards Olympic
qualification for Athens 2004. The losers earm $15,000 (and 270 points).
The USA's Kerri Walsh and Misty May had earlier defeated Cuba's Tamara
Larrea Peraza and Dalixia Fernandez Grasset 2-0 (21-15, 25-23) to win the
bronze medal and earn $12,000 (plus 240 ranking points). Well over 4,000
fans packed the stadium
 Thirty-year-old Pires, who had
finished fifth last year in Rhodes (playing then with Leila Barros) and
was the Sydney Olympics bronze medallist (then with Adriana Samuel), was
named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament and was awarded with the
Speedo Trophy. This was the first gold medal in an World Tour Open for
Pires since Marseille in 1998.
Thirty-one-year-old Ana Paula
won the Swatch trophy for having clocked the fastest service in the Rhodes
tournament, at 79.5 kilometres per hour.
MAIN DRAW SCHEDULE &
RESULTS
All-Brazilian Final A
Fitting End To Hellas Open In Rhodes Town
Two Brazilian teams
(out of a total of five in the Main Draw of the competition) will meet in
the grand final of the Hellas Women's Open, the opening tournament of the
2003 Swatch FIVB World Tour, in Rhodes Town, Sunday night. Ana Paula /
Sandra Pires shut out the No. 1 seeds of the Rhodes tournament, the USA's
Kerri Walsh / Misty May 2-0 (24-21, 19-21) in the first semi-final of the
evening, and Adriana Behar / Shelda defeated Cuba's Larrea Peraza /
Fernandez Grasset 2-0 (21-11, 23-21). The Americans, the top-ranked team
in the world, will play the Cubans for the bronze medal, beginning at
21:00 local time (18:00 GMT). The gold medal final will follow immediately
after.
MAIN DRAW SCHEDULE &
RESULTS
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Efi Sfyri (l) and Vasso Karadassiou finished 5th
in the Hellas Women's Open in Rhodes Town.
Photo:
ActionImages |
Karadassiou / Sfyri &
Arvaniti / Koutroumanidou
Bow Out of
Rhodes 2003
Vasso Karadassiou
and Efi Sfyri came ever so close to yet another semi-final appearance in a
Beach Volleyball World Tour Open, but eventually fell to the top-ranked
team in the world, the USA's Kerri Walsh and Misty May, Saturday evening
in Rhodes Town. The Greek team, who had won the bronze medal last year in
the same location, lost came back from a poor start and 0-1 to force a
tie-break and kept hopes alive until 6-6 in the third set, before
eventually succumbing to the Americans 1-2 (10-21, 21-18, 9-15) in their
quarter-final of the Hellas Women's Open, the opening tournament of the
2003 Swatch-FIVB World Tour. Over 4,000 fans filled the stadium in Central
Rhodes Town to capacity and routed strongly for the home team, while
hundreds more outside were trying in vain to get in, before the organisers
were forced to open part of the VIP tribune to the general public. Despite
the result, the Greek team, that finished in 5th place overall and earned
$6,000 in prize money (plus 180 ranking points that count towards Olympic
qualification) is well within the goals the players have set for
themselves this season --to finish no lower than ninth in each tournament
of the Tour.
Vicky Arvaniti and Thalia
Koutroumanidou, Greece's wonder-girls who made it through to the top eight
in their first appearance together as a team, also remained in 5th place
overall, as (despite some exceptional serving) they lost in the
quarter-finals 0-2 (9-21, 18-21) to Brazil's Ana Paula and Sandra Pires.
The closing day of competition,
Sunday evening, features the semi-finals, beginning at 18:00 local time
(15:00 GMT) with Walsh & May, the No. 1 seeds of this tournament, taking
on Ana Paula & Sandra Pires in the first match. This will be followed with
the second semi-final, where Brazil's Adriana & Shelda meet Cuba's Larrea Peraza
& Fernandez Grasset The bronze medal match begins at 21:00 local time
(18:00 GMT) and will be followed by the gold medal final and the Closing &
Awards Ceremony.
MAIN DRAW SCHEDULE &
RESULTS
TWO GREEK TEAMS IN
QUARTER FINALS!
Vicky Arvaniti and
Thalia Koutroumanidou scored an unbelievable success, Saturday afternoon
in Rhodes Town, when they beat Brazil's Alexandra and Minello 2-0 (21-18,
21-18), to enter the quarter-finals of the Hellas Women's Open of the 2003
Swatch-FIVB World Tour, in Rhodes Town. The young Greek pair now face
another Brazilian team in their next match, at 20:30 local time (17:30
GMT). Earlier, Vasso Karadassiou
and Efi Sfyri had shut out Italy's Lucilla Perrotta and Daneila Gattelli 2-0
(21-13, 21-15), to advance to Saturday evening's quarter finals of the
Hellas Women's Open of the 2003 Swatch-FIVB World Tour. The Greek team now
faces the tough challenge of the No. 1 seeds of the tournament, the USA's
Kerri Walsh and Misty May, at 19:45 local time (16:45 GMT).
WATCH A
VIDEO CLIP OF THE LAST POINT GRE v. ITA (2.80 MB)
MAIN DRAW SCHEDULE &
RESULTS
Greek Teams Get
Opponents In Single Elimination Bracket
Vasso Karadassiou
and Efi Sfyri defeated Mexico's Laura A and Mayra 2-1 (21-18, 16-21, 15-7)
in their last match of Pool Play at the Hellas Open of the 2003
Swatch-FIVB World Tour and will now face Italy's Lucilla Perrotta and
Daniela Gattelli, at 16:00 local time (13:00 GMT) in the 16-team Single
Elimination Bracket. Competition is being held in central Rhodes Town.
Meanwhile, Vicky Arvaniti and
Thalia Koutroumanidou lost in straight sets 0-2 (18-21, 14-21) to Holland's Rebekka Kadijk
and Marrit Leenstra, the no. 3 seeds of this tournament, but finished second in their pool and qualified to the next round,
where they face Brazil's Alexandra and Minello, at 17:00 local time (14:00
GMT).
MAIN DRAW SCHEDULE &
RESULTS
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Thalia Koutroumanidou (facing)
and Vicky Arvaniti rejoice in victory,
Friday afternoon in Rhodes Town.
Photo:
ActionImages |
Two Greek Teams Secure
Berths In Top 16
Vasso Karadassiou
and Efi Sfyri were very close to serious trouble, when they allowed Maria
Tsiartsiani and Katerina Nikolaidou to lead 17-20 in the first set of
their all-Greek encounter in Pool Play of the opening day of the Rhodes
Open in the 2003 Swatch-FIVb World Tour. Still Greece's Sydney Olympians
and bronze medallists last year in the Rhodes Open, came back with a
terrific block by Sfyri and an excellent (if somewhat lucky) dig plus an
ace on the end line by Karadassiou, to turn thematch around and win 2-0
(22-20, 21-16). This victory allowed Karadassiou and Sfyri to secure a
berth in the 16-team Single Elimination Bracket that begins Saturday
afternoon in central Rhodes Town. Karadassiou and Sfyri complete pool play
on Saturday morning against Mexico's Laura A. and Mayra at 11:00 local
time (08:00 GMT).
But Karadassiou and Sfyri are
not the only Greek team in the top 16. Earlier on Friday afternoon, Vicky Arvaniti and
Thalia Koutroumanidou had scored their second victory in pool play and secured
their own place in the 16-team Single Elimination Bracket. The
Greek team, which had earned a Main Draw berth through a Wild Card, shut
out China's Whenhui You and Lu Wang 2-0 (21-19, 21-19), following yet one
more impressive performance in Centre Court at Rhodes Town, Friday
afternoon. Their next match, against Holland's Rebekka Kadijk and Marrit
Leenstra, on Saturday morning, will decide the first place in the pool,
but both teams advance to the next round. Already, both players have set a
personal best in Rhodes, with their qualification to the top 16.
Twenty-one-year-old Koutroumanidou, who has three years of international beach
volleyball experience, had previous best finishes of 25th in several Open
events, including the 2002 Grand Slam in Klagenfurt; her 18-year-old team-mate,
Arvaniti, is making her first ever appearance in a Main Draw of an FIVB
event. The two paired up for the first time this year.
WATCH A
VIDEO CLIP OF THE LAST POINT OF THE MATCH GRE v. CHN (2.78 MB)
MAIN DRAW SCHEDULE &
RESULTS
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Vasso Karadassiou hits past the Cuban block,
Friday morning in Rhodes Town. |
Main Draw Opens With
Greek Victories
The 32-team Main
Draw of the Hellas Open, the opening tournament of the 2003 Swatch-FIVB
World Tour, began with Greek victories in the first round of pool play.
Thalia Koutroumanidou and Vicky Arvaniti capped an excellent performance
with a victory over Japan's Ryo Tokuno and Chiaki Kusuhara 2-0 (28-26,
21-11). The Greek team got a wide early lead in the first set, but the
Japanese came back to tie the score at 18-18 and even reach set-ball at
18-20, before the Greeks (in the Main Draw on a Wild Card) got their act
together again and finsihed the set 28-26. It was all downhill from there
on as Greece scored a total of three aces and five blocks (against none of
either for Japan), to clinch the victory. Arvaniti and Koutroumanidou next
play China's Whenhui You and Lu Wang on Friday afternoon, at 17:00 local
time (14:00 GMT).
Vasso Karadassiou and Efi Sfyri
followed up with a second Greek victory, when they shut out Cuba's Valle
Crespo and Imara Esteves Ribalta 2-0 (21-13, 21-15), setting the
foundations for qualification to the 16-team Single Elimination
Bracket that begins Saturday afternoon. Karadassiou and Sfyri, Greece's
Sydney Olympians and last year's bronze medallists in the Rhodes Open, had
little difficulty against the Cubans, under a burning mid-day sun in
downtown Rhodes Town. The Greeks outplayed the Cubans in all skills and
also took advantage of as many as 13 unforced errors of their opponents to
sail to a comfortable victory. Their next match, Friday night is the
all-Greece clash against Maria Tsiartsiani and Katerina Nikolaidou,
beginning at 21:00 local time (18:00 GMT).
In the third Greek match of the
day, however, Katerina Nikolaidou and Maria Tsiartsiani failed to follow
suit, and were defeated from Mexico's Laura A. and Mayra, who have entered
the Main Draw from the Qualification Tournament, 0-2 (15-21, 19-21).
Nikolaidou / Tsiartsiani next play against Greece's No. 1 team,
Karadassiou and Sfyri, at 21:00 local time (18:00 GMT), Friday night.
The Hellas Women's Open
concludes Sunday night with the semi-finals (beginning at 17:00 local time
or 14:00 GMT) and the bronze- and gold-medal finals (beginning at 20:00
local time or 18:00 GMT).
MAIN DRAW SCHEDULE &
RESULTS
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Efi
Sfyri (l) and Vasso Karadassiou
in Thursday's Press Conference.
Photo: G. Simopoulos |
Greek Teams Sets Goals
For 2003 Season
"This is our first
tournament of the year and it is very important for how we fare in the
remainder of the season", said Vasso Karadassiou at the official Press
Conference for the Hellas Women's Open, with which the 2003 Swatch-FIVB
World Tour opens, Friday morning. "Our goal for the whole season is to be
amongst the top nine teams in each World Tour event", added Efi Sfyri, who
completes the Greek team that took part in the 2000 Sydney Olympics and
won a bronze medal in last year's Rhodes Open. Other Greek teams in the
Main Draw are Katerina Nikolaidou / Maria Tsiartsiani and Thalia
Koutroumanidou / Vicky Arvaniti. The Main Draw of the 2003
Hellas Open begins Friday morning in central Rhodes Town, with 32 teams
vying for top honours. Twenty four teams were directly entered in the Main
Draw and eight more went through the qualification procedure to complete
the roster. The Hellas Open continues Saturday with the conclusion of pool
play and the beginning of a sixteen-team Single Elimination Bracket.
Semi-finals and finals are scheduled for Sunday afternoon. The Hellas Open
also marks the beginning of a qualification procedure for the 2004 Olympic
Games in Athens, which will last through to mid-2004.
QUALIFICATION
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE & RESULTS
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Holland's Sanne Keizer (l) and
Germany's Suzanne Lahme
in Qualification Tournament action
at the Hellas Open in Rhodes. |
Playannakou / Lazaridou
Bow Out Of Rhodes Open 2003
Maria Playannakou
and Mara Lazaridou came back strong from 0-1 to force a tie-break, but
then gave up against Austria's Christine Mellitzer and Irina Brandstetter,
to lose 1-2 (19-21, 21-13, 7-15) in Round II of the Qualification
Tournament of the Hellas Women's Open in Rhodes Town --the opening
tournament in the 2003 Swatch-FIVB World Tour. The Greek team, the last
one of seven home teams originally in the Qualification Tournament to have
remained alive, was eliminated and ranked 41st overall. The Qualification
Tournament concludes Thursday evening, when eight teams will emerge to
move up to the 32-team Main Draw, which begins Friday morning in central
Rhodes Town. Twenty four teams have already directly qualified to the Main
Draw, including three teams from Greece. Amongst the latter are Greece's
Sydney Olympians, Vasso Karadassiou and Efi Sfyri, who won the bronze
medal at last year's Rhodes Open.
QUALIFICATION
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Playannakou / Lazaridou
Score Rare Victory For Greece
Maria Playannakou
and Mara Lazaridou scored a rare victory for Greece in the opening day of
the Qualification Tournament of the Women's Hellas Open, the first event
on the 2003 Swatch-FIVB World Tour. The Greek pair advanced to the second
round of the 63-team single elimination Qualification Tournament, but
still need two more victories on Thursday to make it through to the Main
Draw, which begins Friday at City Hall Square of Rhodes Town. Playannakou
and Lazaridou defeated fellow-Greeks Maria Lyropoulou and Anna Nikolou 2-0
(21-14, 21-10) in the morning country-quota playoffs and then held out to
eliminate Hungary's Anna Grozer and Katalin Schlegl 2-1 (21-17, 20-22,
15-9), to become the only Greek team still alive in the qualification
procedure. Their next opponent, Thursday morning, are Austria's Christine
Mellitzer and Irina Brandstetter. Greece already has three teams directly
entered in the Main Draw, including its top stars, Vasso Karadassiou and
Efi Sfyri, who had won the bronze medal in last year's Rhodes Open.
QUALIFICATION
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Seventy Four Teams Vie
For Eight Berths
Seventy four teams
from throughout the world began their quest in the Qualification
Tournament for eight available Main Draw berths, as the Hellas Women's
Open of the 2003 Swatch-FIVB World Tour got underway in Rhodes Town.
Competition began, Wednesday morning, with Country Quota Play-Offs and 63
teams continue with the Qualification Tournament proper. Twenty-four teams
are directly entered in the Main Draw, which begins Friday. The full
schedule of the Main Draw will be released Thursday night, following the
Technical Meeting, which begins at 21:00 local time (18:00 GMT).
QUALIFICATION
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE & RESULTS
TEAM ENTRY LISTS
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