{"id":195500,"date":"2024-04-12T12:42:33","date_gmt":"2024-04-12T22:42:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=195500"},"modified":"2024-04-12T12:43:51","modified_gmt":"2024-04-12T22:43:51","slug":"costas-warrior-for-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2024\/04\/12\/costas-warrior-for-life\/","title":{"rendered":"UH<\/abbr> volleyball great addresses triumphs, challenges in new memoir"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

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Costas Theocharidis, one of the greatest men\u2019s volleyball players to ever wear a University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> uniform, has just released his first book, which chronicles his life before, during and after his time at UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa.<\/p>\n

Theocharidis, originally from Greece, was a dominant outside hitter for the Rainbow Warriors from 2000 to 2003. “Greece Lightning,” as he was affectionately called by fans, had one of the most decorated careers in NCAA<\/abbr> college sports history, breaking countless records and earning nearly every athletic and academic award possible. He became the NCAA<\/abbr> Division I all-time leader in kills (rally scoring era), the first-ever four-time first-team All-American in U.S. college men\u2019s volleyball history and the first-ever Academic All-American of the Year for UH<\/abbr> in U.S. college sports.<\/p>\n

Upon completion of his eligibility, an athlete on a rival college team filed an official complaint with the NCAA<\/abbr>, questioning Theocharidis\u2019s eligibility. This rocked the community in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> and the volleyball world and had international coverage. The NCAA<\/abbr> made the controversial decision to strip the UH<\/abbr> men\u2019s volleyball program of its 2002 championship, the first-ever men\u2019s national title for UH<\/abbr> athletics, and Theocharidis found himself descending into a deep depression.<\/p>\n

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Spyros Chakas, Costas Theocharidis and Dimitrios Mouchlias pose for a photo with the Greek flag in 2023.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“I dedicated my whole life to volleyball—it took years of commitment, sacrifice, and hard work to achieve those accomplishments and establish my legacy. With that controversy, everything seemed to disintegrate overnight,” Theocharidis said.<\/p>\n

After a highly decorated career that ended ignominiously, Theocharidis retired from volleyball and entered the professional world of finance. During his 20-year career in finance, he worked for some of the top global firms and advised Fortune 500 clients. After retiring from the corporate world to pursue real estate entrepreneurship, he felt a calling to re-engage with the men\u2019s volleyball program. This started a process of catharsis.<\/p>\n