Fire sign tryout winner 'Pari'

Pari Pantazopoulos -- Chicago Fire

The Chicago Fire's open tryouts typically do not bring in a first-team player, but Mount Prospect's Paraskevas "Pari" Pantazopoulos is an exception to the rule.

The Fire announced Monday that Pantazopoulos, who topped the 210-player pool to win the 2011 open tryout in January, has signed with the club.

"Playing professional soccer has always been a dream of mine," Pantazopoulos said. "I moved to Chicago in 1998 and grew up idolizing Fire players like [Ante] Razov, [Peter] Nowak and [Frank] Klopas, and now I'm part of this team. I'm thankful to the Fire organization for this unbelievable opportunity."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.