Breaking records from Greece to the States: Evina Panagiotou is always raising the bar

Before the Robert Platt Invitational meet, sophomore pole vaulter Evina Panagiotou spoke to her father in her home country of Greece.

“Today is the day,” he said, referencing his dream for Panagiotou to break the 25-year-old school record. 

Her father was right. Panagiotou broke the record of 4.20 meters set by Rhian Clarke in 2001 by 0.01 meters, cementing her name in Cougar history.

“I set some small goals for every season to keep me motivated,” Panagiotou said. “I really want to raise the bar as high as I can, and that’s why I train so hard.”

She continued to raise the bar, breaking her own record the following week at the Charlie Thomas Invitational with a height of 4.25 meters.

But making history is not new to Panagiotou. In her home country of Greece, where she resided before attending Houston in 2024, Panagiotou dominated the pole vaulting field, setting the U-20 national record during the summer of 2025 with a mark of 4.38 meters.

But this time was different. It was the first time she made history without her family in the stands.

“It’s hard because they would come to all of my meets in Greece,” Panagiotou said. “And now that I don’t have them with me, I feel like I need to be independent and face things by myself. It’s hard, but I think it is for the best.”

Moving away from Greece to a whole new country was not an easy decision, but it was one that Panagiotou and her family viewed as essential for her to compete at the next level.

“I got the opportunity to be able to compete at the University of Houston, and I was very excited. I knew it would be a good opportunity to try something new,” Panagiotou said. “The athletic programs here are very good and high in quality.”

So she made the courageous decision and moved 5,000 miles to Houston from her hometown of Thessaloniki. While the transition was a big one, Panagiotou still found a way to own each day. 

“The culture is very different from Greece. When I first got here, it was a big shift for me,” Panagiotou said. “But the organization here makes it easier for me to succeed in both sports and academics.”

Panagiotou has now embraced the culture of Houston, quickly breaking the school’s outdoor record in her first-ever season and looking to continue growing.

Having both the indoor and the outdoor records at Houston is just the beginning of the goals Panagiotou has set for herself.

“For the whole season in entirety, my goals are to get a huge PR, be able to compete at the national championships, stay healthy and have some good competitions back in Greece,” she said.

Although she may not have her family alongside her, Panagiotou has found her way to continue improving and working towards her goals.

She will look to make history once more at the Big 12 Indoor Championships beginning Friday, Feb. 27, in Lubbock.