(Photo by John Kelley)
[su_spacer size=”40″] Kyprianou (KIP-ree-AH-noo), who has been the Associate Head Coach for the Bulldogs for a year and as an assistant with the program since the 2009 season, will direct the Georgia men and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field teams as well as UGA’s men and women’s cross country teams.
[su_spacer size=”40″] “Petros’ ability to recruit and develop student-athletes in a wide range of events illustrates his acumen in the track and field world,” said McGarity. “The passion and excitement Petros brings to our program will be felt immediately. We look forward to working alongside Petros and his staff to further advance the six programs under his leadership.”
[su_spacer size=”40″] A native of Limassol, Cyprus, Kyprianou was named the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Indoor National Women’s Assistant Coach of the Year back-to-back in 2014-15. He has also garnered USTFCCCA South Region Assistant Coach of the Year honors four times over the indoor and outdoor seasons in the last two years.
[su_spacer size=”40″] “I want to thank President Morehead, Greg McGarity and Carla Williams, our Deputy Director of Athletics, for this incredible opportunity to lead this program,” said Kyprianou. “I am very grateful for the opportunity Coach (Wayne) Norton has given me to be part of this family back in 2008. Coach Norton is a tremendous leader that served as a role model to our student-athletes and coaches and helped me get to where I am today.
[su_spacer size=”40″] “I will work tirelessly to help our student-athletes achieve a high level of performance along with an environment that promotes an exceptional student-athlete experience.”
[su_spacer size=”40″] Kyprianou recently finished his seventh year with Georgia’s track and field program. While his athletes’ 2014 showing was phenomenal, Kyprianou may have equaled or topped that output in 2015. His crew won four NCAA titles, six Southeastern Conference individual titles, earned a CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team certificate and returned to Athens with 15 NCAA First team All-American certificates.
[su_spacer size=”40″] In addition, his group accounted for 93 NCAA combined points in 2015 and 133.5 SEC combined points, set two American Junior Records, a collegiate/NCAA Championships record in the pentathlon and six SEC Championships Records, among other highlights throughout the season.
[su_spacer size=”40″] In 2014, Kyprianou guided his crew to a school record five NCAA individual titles, a World Junior Championships record and title, six SEC championships and the 100-meter hurdle crown at the USATF Junior Championships. In addition to his national and league champions, Kyprianou boasted 10 NCAA First Team All-America certificates that led to 74.5 combined points scored at the NCAA indoor and outdoor meets and 95 points at the SEC Championships.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Also named the 2008 Indoor West Region Assistant Coach of the Year while at Boise State earlier in his career, Kyprianou guided the Broncos to 21 individual Western Athletic Conference Championships and four All-American honors. In addition, the Broncos claimed the men’s team indoor WAC titles in 2006 and 2007 and outdoor WAC titles in 2006 and 2008.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Kyprianou spent two seasons at the University of Nebraska-Omaha before arriving at Boise State and coached the men and women’s combined events for the Greek national team from 2001-2005. Not only did he earn the Cyprus Athlete of the Year Award in 1999, but he also coached Georgios Andreou, who is the Cyprus national record holder in the decathlon, among many other top-level athletes.
[su_spacer size=”40”] Kyprianou and his wife Masa have two sons, Alexander and Stefan.