Georgia brings back Kupets Carter to lead gymnastics program

She’s back.

Courtney Kupets Carter was named the head coach for the Georgia gymnastics program Tuesday afternoon. Kupets Carter, whose picture is front and center on the mural at Stegeman Coliseum, is regarded as the greatest gymnast in Georgia history after a collegiate career that included nine individual championships. Kupets Carter was a part of four consecutive team national championships from 2006-09, which were also the final four years of former head coach Suzanne Yoculan Leebern’s time with the program.

Introduced during a news conference, Kupets Carter expressed confidence and enthusiasm that Georgia gymnastics will return to the national stage.

“I just would like to say that Georgia gymnastics will win championships again,” Kupets Carter said.

Under Yoculan Leebern, Georgia won 10 national titles. In the eight years since her retirement, Georgia has made three Super Six appearances. Georgia finished this past season 10th at the NCAA Championships.

Georgia athletics director Greg McGarity said Kupets Carter was identified fairly early in his coaching search and was among “numerous people” with whom the job was discussed. McGarity, who was very familiar with Kupets Carter due to various athletics functions she helped participate in after her college career ended, came away impressed with how she responded to various questions dealing with stressful situations during the interview process.

“She didn’t flinch,” McGarity said. “There were times where she said, ‘I need to think about that.’ She had thoughtful responses. She was able to speak from the heart. You can tell about her passion for the sport.”

While Kupets Carter brings a plethora of elite experience, this will be her first collegiate head coaching job. After her competing career ended, Kupets Carter served as a student assistant under former head coach Jay Clark. More recently, Kupets Carter has worked as a part-time coach at Oconee Gymnastics and as an analyst for the SEC Network.

But Kupets Carter will have a ton of experience helping her at the start. During her introductory news conference, Kupets Carter announced that Yoculan Leebern will serve as a volunteer assistant coach on Georgia’s staff. It marks Yoculan Leebern’s return to coaching since her final season in 2009.

“I’m so thankful that she would come back and take the time and invest back into the program that she started,” Kupets Carter said. “It’s going to be a monumental year for not only the program but the athletes who get to experience little bits of what I got to experience out of Suzanne.”

Yoculan Leebern said Kupets Carter came up with the idea of bringing her back on a volunteer basis.

“She has what it takes to be a successful head coach,” Yoculan Leebern said. “It’s pretty hard to say no to someone you believe in.”

During her time at Georgia, Kupets Carter recorded eight perfect 10s and won the Honda-Broderick Award twice (2007 and 2009).

Kupets Carter’s nine individual championships are an NCAA record. An Achilles injury during Kupets Carter’s junior season prevented her from claiming even more individual titles.

Kupets Carter is also the only female gymnast to claim titles in the all-around along with every individual event.

Prior to her collegiate career, Kupets Carter competed in the 2004 Summer Olympics for the United States. She helped the U.S. win a silver medal while winning an individual bronze medal in the uneven bars. She was inducted into the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2014.

In April, a video published on the NCAA’s website recognized Kupets Carter as the greatest collegiate gymnast of all time.

“I adore her,” Yoculan Leebern said. “I see her, and I have for many years, as the face of Georgia gymnastics.”

This story was originally published May 9, 2017 at 3:01 PM with the headline "Georgia brings back Kupets Carter to lead gymnastics program."