University of Georgia Athletics
Bulldogs Busy at London Worlds
August 02, 2017 | Track & Field, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
Just like during last month's FINA World Championships swim meet in Budapest, the Georgia Bulldogs will be well represented at the IAAF World Championships for track and field that begin Friday in London. If there's a major event in either sport, you can count on more than a few Dogs to be there.
In London, 11 current or former Bulldogs (representing eight different countries) are scheduled to compete. Among them are maybe the most athletic set of siblings in the United States if not the world: heptathlete Kendell Williams and decathlete Devon Williams. Also busy running around London Stadium and the nearby warm-up areas will be Georgia coach Petros Kyprianou, who as the photo atop this story illustrates will be coaching a lot of different athletes from different countries during the 10-day competition.
Just like in Rio, where he was on the Estonian staff while also coaching his Bulldogs from other countries, Kyprianou has to study the competition schedule closely to see where he has to be and for how long, before he's needed elsewhere.
"The good thing is, it's a long meet which makes it a little bit easier," Kyprianou said before heading to London. "I believe a couple of events will be on the same day, but I should be able to make it work. It's a good problem to have."
The Williams siblings wrapped up their Georgia careers in 2016-17, with Kendell winning the NCAA indoor title in the pentathlon (for a record fourth time) and Devon winning the heptathlon, and then at the NCAA outdoor meet this spring, Kendell won her third heptathlon and Devon placed second in the decathlon.
After winning the heptathlon at the USATF Outdoor Championships in late June, with a person-best score of 6,564, Kendell will be in her USA gear in London. That her days of competing in Georgia's red and black isn't something she's fully accepted yet.
"I think I still feel like next year I'm going to have on a Georgia uniform," she said last month. "When, next year, I'm not in a Georgia uniform, that's when it will really sink in."
Kendell's remarkable career at Georgia has coincided the past three years with that of Keturah Orji, the equally remarkable jumper. Orji, the American record holder in the triple jump and runner-up to Georgia's Kate Hall in the long jump at the NCAA Outdoors this year, is five-for-six in NCAA competitions in the triple jump, winning outdoor titles in each of her first three seasons and indoor crowns in her last two.
Unfortunately for Orji, who placed fourth in the triple in Rio, narrowly missing a bronze medal, she is sitting out the World Championships due to a leg injury. She won the triple at the USATF Outdoor Championships by more than 18 inches, but opted to rest and heal now and be ready for her senior season.
For Georgia's top track and field student-athletes, the past 15 to 18 months have been a serious grind. There was the 2016 outdoor season, with the SECs, NCAAs, Olympic Trails and Olympics, followed by a little rest, then the indoor season and the same outdoor schedule of SECs, NCAAs, Trials and now the World Championships.
"It definitely makes for a long season, so you just kind of have to not think about how long you've been going and just focus on one meet at a time," Kendell said. "The summertime is when it all gets fun, when SECs come, then NCAAs, then Trials and then the big meet, whether it's the Olympics or Worlds.
"The training, as far as coming out to practice when you've been working for so long, is hard, but I think it helps that these meets are the most fun. It makes you excited to keep going and motivates you to keep training."
Kyprianou said a stretch like the past 15 months requires careful planning and management of the athletes' bodies and schedules.
"You have to know what to do and what not to do," he said. "It's all about making smart decisions every step of the way."
Another notable Bulldog duo in the World Championships will be the husband-and-wife team of star sprinter Shaunae Miller-Uibo of the Bahamas and Estonian decathlete Maicel Uibo. Two of Georgia's 11 athletes in London are decathletes from Estonia, Uibo, who graduated in 2016, and rising senior Karl Saluri — they also competed together in 2016 at the Rio Olympics.
Along with three decathletes (Williams, Uibo and Saluri), Georgia will have three hammer throwers in former Dogs Jenny Dahlgren of Argentina, Nikola Lomnicka of Slovakia and American Kibwe Johnson. In the high jump with be current Dog Tatiana Gusin of Greece and former Georgia great Levern Spencer of St. Lucia.
The only runners Georgia will have competing in London are Miller-Uibo, who famously won gold in the 400-meters in Rio with the dive across the finish line, and current Dog Cejhae Green of Antigua and Barbuda. Miller-Uibo is set to run the 200 and 400 and the 4x400 relay, while Green will run the 100 and the 4x100 relay.
UGAAA Staff Writer
Just like during last month's FINA World Championships swim meet in Budapest, the Georgia Bulldogs will be well represented at the IAAF World Championships for track and field that begin Friday in London. If there's a major event in either sport, you can count on more than a few Dogs to be there.
In London, 11 current or former Bulldogs (representing eight different countries) are scheduled to compete. Among them are maybe the most athletic set of siblings in the United States if not the world: heptathlete Kendell Williams and decathlete Devon Williams. Also busy running around London Stadium and the nearby warm-up areas will be Georgia coach Petros Kyprianou, who as the photo atop this story illustrates will be coaching a lot of different athletes from different countries during the 10-day competition.
Just like in Rio, where he was on the Estonian staff while also coaching his Bulldogs from other countries, Kyprianou has to study the competition schedule closely to see where he has to be and for how long, before he's needed elsewhere.
"The good thing is, it's a long meet which makes it a little bit easier," Kyprianou said before heading to London. "I believe a couple of events will be on the same day, but I should be able to make it work. It's a good problem to have."
The Williams siblings wrapped up their Georgia careers in 2016-17, with Kendell winning the NCAA indoor title in the pentathlon (for a record fourth time) and Devon winning the heptathlon, and then at the NCAA outdoor meet this spring, Kendell won her third heptathlon and Devon placed second in the decathlon.
After winning the heptathlon at the USATF Outdoor Championships in late June, with a person-best score of 6,564, Kendell will be in her USA gear in London. That her days of competing in Georgia's red and black isn't something she's fully accepted yet.
"I think I still feel like next year I'm going to have on a Georgia uniform," she said last month. "When, next year, I'm not in a Georgia uniform, that's when it will really sink in."
Kendell's remarkable career at Georgia has coincided the past three years with that of Keturah Orji, the equally remarkable jumper. Orji, the American record holder in the triple jump and runner-up to Georgia's Kate Hall in the long jump at the NCAA Outdoors this year, is five-for-six in NCAA competitions in the triple jump, winning outdoor titles in each of her first three seasons and indoor crowns in her last two.
Unfortunately for Orji, who placed fourth in the triple in Rio, narrowly missing a bronze medal, she is sitting out the World Championships due to a leg injury. She won the triple at the USATF Outdoor Championships by more than 18 inches, but opted to rest and heal now and be ready for her senior season.
For Georgia's top track and field student-athletes, the past 15 to 18 months have been a serious grind. There was the 2016 outdoor season, with the SECs, NCAAs, Olympic Trails and Olympics, followed by a little rest, then the indoor season and the same outdoor schedule of SECs, NCAAs, Trials and now the World Championships.
"It definitely makes for a long season, so you just kind of have to not think about how long you've been going and just focus on one meet at a time," Kendell said. "The summertime is when it all gets fun, when SECs come, then NCAAs, then Trials and then the big meet, whether it's the Olympics or Worlds.
"The training, as far as coming out to practice when you've been working for so long, is hard, but I think it helps that these meets are the most fun. It makes you excited to keep going and motivates you to keep training."
Kyprianou said a stretch like the past 15 months requires careful planning and management of the athletes' bodies and schedules.
"You have to know what to do and what not to do," he said. "It's all about making smart decisions every step of the way."
Another notable Bulldog duo in the World Championships will be the husband-and-wife team of star sprinter Shaunae Miller-Uibo of the Bahamas and Estonian decathlete Maicel Uibo. Two of Georgia's 11 athletes in London are decathletes from Estonia, Uibo, who graduated in 2016, and rising senior Karl Saluri — they also competed together in 2016 at the Rio Olympics.
Along with three decathletes (Williams, Uibo and Saluri), Georgia will have three hammer throwers in former Dogs Jenny Dahlgren of Argentina, Nikola Lomnicka of Slovakia and American Kibwe Johnson. In the high jump with be current Dog Tatiana Gusin of Greece and former Georgia great Levern Spencer of St. Lucia.
The only runners Georgia will have competing in London are Miller-Uibo, who famously won gold in the 400-meters in Rio with the dive across the finish line, and current Dog Cejhae Green of Antigua and Barbuda. Miller-Uibo is set to run the 200 and 400 and the 4x400 relay, while Green will run the 100 and the 4x100 relay.
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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