University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Women's Track & Field

Illinois director of track, field and cross country Petros Kyprianou announced the hiring of Eric Johannigmeier (pronounced JOE-han-ig-my-er) as the new head cross

Ashley Smith began at Illinois on Feb. 2, 2026, where she will assist in coaching the distance crew in cross country and track while also handling assistant director

Owens-Delerme represents Puerto Rico nationally and most recently competed in the decathlon at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games where he placed ninth. The Nike professional

Deanna Price joined the Illini track and field coaching staff on a volunteer role in 2022 and has been promoted to an assistant coach for her second season in 2023

In his third year as the pole vault coach (2024-25) Mitchell led Cody Johnston to be the Big Ten Outdoor Champion in the pole vault with his voided meet record clearance

Dillon Yearby was hired as the track, field and cross country team’s director of operations on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. Yearby comes to Illinois after spending

Director of Illinois track, field and cross country Petros Kyprianou has announced the hiring of Olympian Garrett Scantling as an assistant coach on Tuesday (July

By the numbers All-Americans: 8    Big Ten Champions: 2    School Records (ILL): 15 All-Americans (MVC): 20    World Champions: 1    Conference Champions

Director of track, field and cross country Petros Kyprianou has announced the hiring of assistant coach Jaimie Robinson to his coaching staff to start the 2025-26

2 Olympians BY THE NUMBERS Big Ten Champions: 3    School Records (ILL): 7    Top-10 Marks (ILL): 45 BIO In his third year at the helm

Two-time NCAA Championship coach Petros Kyprianou (pronounced KEEP-ree-on-oo) was hired on July 26, 2022 as the new director of the Fighting Illini track and field and cross country programs. The program took another step forward in Kyprianou's third season (2024-25) as he led the women's team to a fifth-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, their highest finish in 29 years and third-highest finish in program history. From 2015-2021, Kyprianou served in the same capacity at the University of Georgia, where, in his six seasons as head coach, he led the Bulldogs to unprecedented success, including a pair of NCAA titles – the first in school history – three runner-up performances, and a total of 16 top-ten NCAA finishes. Kyprianou was a three-time U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) National Coach of the Year, winning the award in 2017 (women outdoor) and twice in 2018 (women indoor and men outdoor). He coached athletes to a total of 28 NCAA titles during his 13-year Georgia tenure. A native of Cyprus, Kyprianou competed in the decathlon, pole vault, hurdles, and long jump in Greece, winning several national championships. He graduated from Aristotle University in Greece and later earned a master's degree from UNO.