Germantown Academy grad Garland wins second straight SEC Heptathlon Title for Georgia

Kyle Garland grew up watching the SEC Championships on television.
He dreamt of one day competing.
Sometimes, reality exceeds the fantasy.
Garland’s talent – or talents, as in the many it takes to master the heptathlon, combined with the hours of hard work and dedication that he has poured into his craft, have earned him rare distinction at The University of Georgia.
“It took me a little while to process what I had actually accomplished,” Garland said, “but while reflecting on that weekend, I kept getting feelings of great joy.
“It felt really good to not only have replicated my placing from last year but to better my personal best.”
Garland, a 2018 graduate of Germantown Academy, battled to his second consecutive heptathlon title at The Southeastern Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. earlier this month.
Garland became the sixth SEC heptathlete (third from Georgia) since the event was started at the meet in 2004 to win back-to-back titles in the event, and that was with his personal-best 6,012 points.
That score also leads the NCAA and is ninth in the world (top American).
“It is really a blessing to have the NCAA-leading mark and to be ranked ninth in the world,” the Georgia Bulldog said. “The pressure that comes from that is very massive, but I like a little bit of pressure. It brings out the ‘dawg’ in me.
“Also being ranked top 10 in the world this year is a really great feeling. To be in the conversation with some of the best track and field athletes in the world is amazing.”
Amazingly, the Bulldogs have now won the last nine SEC Heptathlon Titles in a row, featuring five different student-athletes with a streak that dates back to 2013.
Said coach Petros Kyprianou: “The thing that stood out (about Kyle) was his collected aggression in each event, where he kept his cool while being a fearless warrior. His progression in the pole vault is significant, but also in every event, he pretty much made himself believe that his ceiling is extremely high and nothing can stop him if he remains a ‘silent killer.’ Kyle has very high goals and expectations and we are here to help him accomplish every single one of them.”

Garland’s score improves his No. 7 mark in the school record books and gives the Bulldogs seven 6,000-point scorers under head Kyprianou.
The former Patriot was the third finisher in the 60-meter hurdles to start the day and kept his lead through five events. He ran an 8.12 to tally 952 points and had a 169-point edge headed into the pole vault.
Then came a bit of magic.
Garland came through with a third-attempt clearance at 15 feet, 7 inches for 834 points, putting him up 138 points with only the 1,000-meter left.
Garland raced to eighth to assure his victory.
“The winning tradition that the University of Georgia Multi’s program has grown is unreal,” Garland said, “and to be able to carry on that tradition for two years now is like icing on the cake.
“I feel very blessed to be part of this amazing program, training alongside some of the world’s best athletes, all under coach Petros.”
Said Garland of peaking in the pole vault: “The main thing for me was just staying relaxed in that event. I knew that going into the competition, I had some very good practices and it was only a matter of time that a personal best came from it.
“I went into the competition trusting my coach and the training that we had done leading up to the meet and the rest was history.”
The versatile standout is making plenty of that.
He headed to the NCAA Indoor Championships this weekend with big goals in mind.
“I am excited beyond words to take on the competition at this year’s NCAA Indoor Championships,” Garland said. “The competition this year is very high and I know that very big scores will be produced across the board.
“My biggest goal for this meet is to stay consistent and to ultimately put up a bigger score than I did at SEC’s. That will set me up very well going into this outdoor season.”