Eric Sato | |||
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Personal information | |||
Full name | Eric Anthony Sato | ||
Nationality | American | ||
Born | May 5, 1966 57) Santa Monica, California, U.S. | (age||
Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
College / University | Pepperdine University | ||
Volleyball information | |||
Position | Defensive specialist | ||
Number | 11 (1988) 14 (1992) | ||
National team | |||
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Medal record |
Eric Anthony Sato (born May 5, 1966, in Santa Monica, California) is an American former volleyball player and two-time Olympian. He was a member of the United States national volleyball team that won the gold medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. [1] He also played in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain and won a bronze medal. [1] He was a serving and defensive specialist, and was widely considered to be the best defensive player in the world. [1] [2] After the Olympics, he played professional beach volleyball. [1]
Sato played college volleyball at Pepperdine University. [1]
Sato's sister Liane played volleyball with the United States women's national team in both the 1988 and 1992 Olympic Games, capturing a bronze medal in 1992. [3] [4] [5] For the Sato family, a capstone was the 1988 Olympic Games, when Eric and Liane were both competing, and their brother Gary was a coach on the men's volleyball team. [3]
Charles Frederick "Karch" Kiraly is an American volleyball player, coach, and broadcast announcer. He was a central part of the U.S National Team that won gold medals at the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games. He went on to win the gold medal again at the 1996 Olympic Games, the first Olympic competition to feature beach volleyball. He is the only player to have won Olympic medals of any color in both the indoor and beach volleyball categories. He played college volleyball for the UCLA Bruins, where his teams won three national championships under head coach Al Scates.
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