University of Georgia Athletics
Quick Chat: Anna Hall
April 16, 2021 | Track & Field, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Anna Hall placed second in the pentathlon and third in the high jump at last month's NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. It was her first NCAAs due to the pandemic and only the beginning for a talented student-athlete trying to follow in the footsteps of Kendell Williams. who won four pentathlon and three heptathlon NCAA titles during her extraordinary Georgia career.
As she did at practice Wednesday, Hall, a sophomore from Highlands Ranch, Colo., often gets to train with Williams, who is ranked fifth in the world in the heptathlon. During a Quick Chat after practice, Hall talked about training alongside a legend, her improved skills in the kitchen, finding time to relax, and much more.
Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: How much better are you at dealing with the training and practice that you go through now versus when you first got to Georgia?
Hall: I think the biggest improvement for me has been in recovering faster and better. I've made a lot of changes from last year to this year, and it's helped being out of the dorms — just getting more sleep, being able to cook for myself and make sure I'm eating the right recovery foods, doing extra rehab at night in my room, stretching, all that type of stuff.
Even those little things really don't seem that important, over time I've definitely noticed that when I'm on top of the little things I just feel better every day at practice. It was a visible difference for (track and field head coach Petros Kyprianou), as well.
Frierson: What is your favorite recovery meal?
Hall: I'm actually very picky, so this year I've been working a lot on cooking more. I cook foods that I like that are also good for recovery, like I eat a lot of salmon, just lots of protein, and I make sure I have some type of carb and some type of vegetable. My favorite meal is salmon, risotto, spinach and avocado. It's easy, it's good and it helps me recover a lot, so it's something I have almost every week.
Frierson: Your skills in the kitchen have improved dramatically in the last year or so?
Hall: Yes, definitely. Over the lockdown and being home, I got to spend a lot of time at home with my mom and for the first time I was interested in how to cook, instead of in high school when I was just like, what's for dinner? I learned a lot of recipes from her when I was home that I've been able to take back here and make my own, so that's been great.
Frierson: Looking back with a little distance now, how would you assess your NCAA Indoors?
Hall: It was definitely very productive, and I think it's going to be a great propellor for outdoors. For it being my first full indoor season and first nationals, I'm definitely proud of what I was able to do. Obviously, I did want more and I wanted to win at least one if not both of those events, but realizing the quality of the competition that was there and the scores (champion Tyra Gittens of Texas A&M) and I put up in the multi were world-class, so, honestly, I just feel proud to be a part of the competition that we had and that I get to keep competing with her outdoors.
Frierson: I would imagine training with Kendell is both a daily challenge and a daily source of inspiration.
Hall: I feel like I've been able to learn so much from Kendell, even without her sometimes meaning to teach me things. She's also such a great person and I feel like I can come to her with anything. She's just such a great resource and such a nice, good friend to have. She's one of the sweetest people I've ever met, and she can see the best in everyone right away. And that's definitely a rare quality.
Frierson: You've obviously got a huge workload with school and training and competing, so what do you do to get away? What do you do to turn your mind off for a little while?
Hall: Honestly, practice feels like my getaway sometimes because I do enjoy practice. That's kind of my break from studying. I love our coaches, I love my teammates, so just being out here with everyone kind of feels like my break.
To really get away from it all, my sister (Julia) is here now as a grad student and on the team as well, so I'll go hang out with her and her little dog.
Frierson: What has that experience been like, having your sister here?
Hall: It's been amazing to have her here. We've definitely grown a lot closer — she's like, "Wow, I hang out with you more than I was expecting here." I literally see her every day, sometimes more than once a day, so that's been really nice, especially with having to be really careful and take all the precautions (because of the pandemic), it's nice to have your sister close where you can just go over there and hang out and get away from everything.
Frierson: Of the different events in the multis, what is the one that has been the most challenging to learn or do at a high level?
Hall: Javelin and long jump for me have definitely been the two biggest obstacles just because they're the two events that I started the latest. I'm definitely the least comfortable with them, but javelin's been coming along and Petros and I have been excited about the progress I've made in that event. Next up is long jump and we're starting to figure some things out, but the biggest struggle there is just getting more consistent.
Frierson: Javelin is always fascinating to me because I presume that the javelin itself started out as an ancient weapon.
Hall: It is bizarre, and it's a very confusing and frustrating event, especially at first. It just looks like it shouldn't be that hard, and then you start trying it and you start trying to do the techniques, and you're like, these are such odd positions to put your body in and the time of it is so weird.
It's definitely a very challenging event but I started enjoying it a lot more this year and having fun with it.
Frierson: Are you physically exhausted at the end of every day? Are you out the moment your head hits the pillow?
Hall: I have had to work on getting to bed early — I try to be in bed at 10:30 or 11 at the latest. For some reason, at night I always think of the things I want to do the next day and I start trying to do them right then. But when my head hits the pillow I fall asleep so fast. I'm definitely exhausted at the end of most days but usually there's something funny that happens to keep it light.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Staff Writer
Anna Hall placed second in the pentathlon and third in the high jump at last month's NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships. It was her first NCAAs due to the pandemic and only the beginning for a talented student-athlete trying to follow in the footsteps of Kendell Williams. who won four pentathlon and three heptathlon NCAA titles during her extraordinary Georgia career.
As she did at practice Wednesday, Hall, a sophomore from Highlands Ranch, Colo., often gets to train with Williams, who is ranked fifth in the world in the heptathlon. During a Quick Chat after practice, Hall talked about training alongside a legend, her improved skills in the kitchen, finding time to relax, and much more.
Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: How much better are you at dealing with the training and practice that you go through now versus when you first got to Georgia?
Hall: I think the biggest improvement for me has been in recovering faster and better. I've made a lot of changes from last year to this year, and it's helped being out of the dorms — just getting more sleep, being able to cook for myself and make sure I'm eating the right recovery foods, doing extra rehab at night in my room, stretching, all that type of stuff.
Even those little things really don't seem that important, over time I've definitely noticed that when I'm on top of the little things I just feel better every day at practice. It was a visible difference for (track and field head coach Petros Kyprianou), as well.
Frierson: What is your favorite recovery meal?
Hall: I'm actually very picky, so this year I've been working a lot on cooking more. I cook foods that I like that are also good for recovery, like I eat a lot of salmon, just lots of protein, and I make sure I have some type of carb and some type of vegetable. My favorite meal is salmon, risotto, spinach and avocado. It's easy, it's good and it helps me recover a lot, so it's something I have almost every week.
Frierson: Your skills in the kitchen have improved dramatically in the last year or so?
Hall: Yes, definitely. Over the lockdown and being home, I got to spend a lot of time at home with my mom and for the first time I was interested in how to cook, instead of in high school when I was just like, what's for dinner? I learned a lot of recipes from her when I was home that I've been able to take back here and make my own, so that's been great.
Frierson: Looking back with a little distance now, how would you assess your NCAA Indoors?
Hall: It was definitely very productive, and I think it's going to be a great propellor for outdoors. For it being my first full indoor season and first nationals, I'm definitely proud of what I was able to do. Obviously, I did want more and I wanted to win at least one if not both of those events, but realizing the quality of the competition that was there and the scores (champion Tyra Gittens of Texas A&M) and I put up in the multi were world-class, so, honestly, I just feel proud to be a part of the competition that we had and that I get to keep competing with her outdoors.
Frierson: I would imagine training with Kendell is both a daily challenge and a daily source of inspiration.
Hall: I feel like I've been able to learn so much from Kendell, even without her sometimes meaning to teach me things. She's also such a great person and I feel like I can come to her with anything. She's just such a great resource and such a nice, good friend to have. She's one of the sweetest people I've ever met, and she can see the best in everyone right away. And that's definitely a rare quality.
Frierson: You've obviously got a huge workload with school and training and competing, so what do you do to get away? What do you do to turn your mind off for a little while?
Hall: Honestly, practice feels like my getaway sometimes because I do enjoy practice. That's kind of my break from studying. I love our coaches, I love my teammates, so just being out here with everyone kind of feels like my break.
To really get away from it all, my sister (Julia) is here now as a grad student and on the team as well, so I'll go hang out with her and her little dog.
Frierson: What has that experience been like, having your sister here?
Hall: It's been amazing to have her here. We've definitely grown a lot closer — she's like, "Wow, I hang out with you more than I was expecting here." I literally see her every day, sometimes more than once a day, so that's been really nice, especially with having to be really careful and take all the precautions (because of the pandemic), it's nice to have your sister close where you can just go over there and hang out and get away from everything.
Frierson: Of the different events in the multis, what is the one that has been the most challenging to learn or do at a high level?
Hall: Javelin and long jump for me have definitely been the two biggest obstacles just because they're the two events that I started the latest. I'm definitely the least comfortable with them, but javelin's been coming along and Petros and I have been excited about the progress I've made in that event. Next up is long jump and we're starting to figure some things out, but the biggest struggle there is just getting more consistent.
Frierson: Javelin is always fascinating to me because I presume that the javelin itself started out as an ancient weapon.
Hall: It is bizarre, and it's a very confusing and frustrating event, especially at first. It just looks like it shouldn't be that hard, and then you start trying it and you start trying to do the techniques, and you're like, these are such odd positions to put your body in and the time of it is so weird.
It's definitely a very challenging event but I started enjoying it a lot more this year and having fun with it.
Frierson: Are you physically exhausted at the end of every day? Are you out the moment your head hits the pillow?
Hall: I have had to work on getting to bed early — I try to be in bed at 10:30 or 11 at the latest. For some reason, at night I always think of the things I want to do the next day and I start trying to do them right then. But when my head hits the pillow I fall asleep so fast. I'm definitely exhausted at the end of most days but usually there's something funny that happens to keep it light.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Assistant Sports Communications Director 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.
Players Mentioned
Multi-Events
/ Track & FieldGeorgia Track & Field Outdoor National Championships Video Recap
Monday, June 16
Georgia Track & Field Outdoor NCAAs Day 2 Recap
Friday, June 13
Georgia Track & Field Feature: Throwers Profile
Monday, June 09
Georgia Track & Field Outdoor SEC Championships Day 3 Video Recap
Monday, May 19