Pat Etcheberry, UK Athletics Hall of Famer, Has Passed Away
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Pat Etcheberry, a Southeastern Conference javelin champion at the University of Kentucky, Olympics participant, UK coach, UK Athletics Hall of Famer and a pioneer/legend in the field of athletic strength and conditioning, has died at the age of 82 in Longwood, Fla.
A native of Chile, Etcheberry’s 26-year affiliation at the University of Kentucky began from 1963-67 as an athlete for the track and field team. His term as a Wildcat athlete was highlighted by throwing the javelin for Chile in the 1964 Olympics and winning the gold medal in the event at the 1966 SEC Championships. He later participated in the 1967 and 1971 Pan American Games.
“For more than a quarter-century, Pat Etcheberry made a broad impact at UK as an athlete and coach, training and motivating a generation of Wildcats,” said Mitch Barnhart, Director of Athletics. “His groundbreaking approaches to athlete development made a mark that reached into virtually every sport and his influence will continue. Our condolences are with Pat’s family and the countless athletes who benefited from his guidance.”
Etcheberry stayed on at UK as an assistant coach for the track and field team from 1967-79 and was head coach from 1979-84. Along the way, he also became the strength and conditioning coach for all Wildcat athletes and served in that post from 1973-89.
It was during that time that Etcheberry began shaping an innovative approach to athletic development, including weightlifting, conditioning, agility, mental toughness, nutrition, injury prevention and recovery in unique ways. His groundbreaking work proved to be a springboard for his post-UK career.
In 1989, Etcheberry moved to Florida at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy (now IMG Academy) in Bradenton, Fla. and later founded Etcheberry Sports Performance among other ventures.
At Bollettieri Academy, Etcheberry began making his mark in the tennis world and eventually worked with the United States Tennis Association, Junior Tennis Champions Center and numerous collegiate teams. His client list included champions such as Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Jim Courier, Justine Henin, Martina Hingis, Monica Seles and Jennifer Capriati.
Etcheberry was known for his slogan of “train hard, win easy” and in addition to tennis, he became a leader in training athletes in a variety of sports, including golf, football, basketball, hockey, baseball, auto racing, sumo wrestling and various Olympic sports.
Some of Etcheberry’s clients included:
• Golf – Greg Norman, Ernie Els, Nick Faldo, Julieta Granada
• Football – Shaun King, Jim Harbaugh, Willie Parker, Dermontti Dawson, Anthony “Booger” McFarland
• Basketball – Kenny Walker, Rex Chapman, Jason Williams
• Hockey – Mike Richter, Steve Shields, Petr Svoboda
• Auto Racing – Eddie Cheever and Al Unser
• Sumo Wrestling – Sale Konishiki
• Olympic sports – trained 15 Olympic medalists
Etcheberry, who was inducted into the UK Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014, is survived by daughters Tyler and Mallory Etcheberry and his brother, Alain Etcheberry.
