University of Georgia Athletics
A Quick Chat With ... Petros Kyprianou
July 01, 2015 | Track & Field
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
ATHENS, Ga. — A few minutes after his introductory news conference as the new head coach of the Georgia men's and women's track and field and cross country teams, Petros Kyprianou took a few minutes to talk about his big promotion, his days as a decathlete and much more.
Kyprianou, a native of Cyprus who was an assistant on Wayne Norton's staff at Georgia for the past seven years, was named Norton's replacement Tuesday. The 38-year-old works with multi-event athletes and jumpers, and in recent years his performers have had tremendous success. In 2015, they won four NCAA titles and six SEC individual titles.
Here's some of what he had to say during our quick chat:
Frierson: What kind of athlete were you? What were you best at and what do you wish you did better?
Kyprianou: I was a decathlete and I scored close to 7,300 points. I was nothing special. I was an extremely technical guy, I loved techniques, and I loved the weight room. ... I would say my best event was the pole vault and then some of the jumps. I was not very fast and not extremely strong, but I had very good techniques.
Frierson: When did you know you were ready to be a head coach?
Kyprianou: That's a good question. I've seen a lot of things and I want to win a national championship as a team. The individual titles are great, but it feels different.
After all these years, I told myself I'd like to be a head coach before I turn 40. You've got to have a plan in your life. To have your own program is always great. It worked out well for me and I'm extremely thankful for that.
Coach Norton gave me the opportunity to make some pretty crucial decisions. They were with athletes or my group, and they were major decisions, and I think I did a pretty good job. That made me feel pretty good and I think I said to myself, I can do this. Like my dad says: success only comes with doing simple things extraordinarily well. That's what I go by.
Frierson: You've had tremendous success recruiting and working with Georgia's multi-event athletes and jumpers, many of whom have become world-class in their events. Is there an element of your work with them that can apply to the whole program?
Kyprianou: Yes. There's no miracle formula. I'm going to apply what I do with them to the whole team. It's pretty simple. I've always supported all the groups and I know the whole team. With my personality, I'm a people person and I'm social, and I'll talk to them and motivate them.
They like that. They're kids and you've got to show them love. I'm going to apply that, what I've done with my group, and show that love to the rest of the team. I want every group to be as successful as my group has been.
Frierson: Will being the head coach affect your work with the jumpers and multi-event athletes?
Kyprianou: We've had a really good formula with staggered workout times. They're kids and they understand. They come in, we chat a little bit and then we're all about business. You come in, you get ready, you train and during the weekend or when we're on the road, then we share life experiences and all that, and we get closer.
What I'd like to do is spend more time walking around the track when I'm not busy with my group or even when my group is warming up. I can go around and say a few good words to the sprinters or throwers or distance runners.
And the good thing is, I've been a decathlete, so I know all the events in track and field. I've done them. When you've gone through that it helps you appreciate the athletes and see and feel what they're going through. I feel that's going to be my biggest help in this.
Frierson: On a much more silly note, we all have movies that we can watch over and over. We might even own the DVD, but if we see it on TV we're still going to stop and watch. What are yours?
Kyprianou: The all-time best is "Book of Eli" with Denzel Washington, who's my favorite actor. That's the No. 1. "The Equalizer" also with Denzel Washington, that's another one, and "Gladiator."
Frierson: You're not only taking over as the head coach, but you're also doing so with the 2016 Olympics about a year away. Does that add to it because while everyone on the team would like to make an Olympic team, quite a few of them have a really good shot at it?
Kyprianou: That adds to the excitement. It's big — huge. Maicel Uibo is already going (for Estonia), he has the Olympic (decathlon) standard, and (high jumper) Leontia Kallenou is a quarter of an inch from the standard, so if she gets it she goes (for Cyprus). And then we have a load of American kids that have the standard but they've got to go through the Olympic trials, so that will be exciting.
It's going to be an extra motivation and that's the dream of every athlete. That's what we're looking for and it really adds to the suspense.
John Frierson is a staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Hall of Fame at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. Follow him on Twitter: @TheFrierson and @ITAHallofFame.