Florida Tech Panthers Add Two Key Additions To Men’s Track and Field Team

By  //  June 18, 2016

Rapp comes to FLORIDA TECH from Czech Republic

Joshua Norville and Ondrej Rapp will join Panthers for 2017 season 9Florida Tech Image)
Joshua Norville and Ondrej Rapp will join the Florida Tech Panthers for 2017 season. (Florida Tech image)

BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA – Head coach Jason Munsch is thrilled to announce the addition of Joshua Norville andOndrej Rapp to the 2016 men’s track & field signing class. Norville and Rapp will join the Panthers’ roster for the 2017 season.

“The addition of Josh and Ondrej to our program will fill a big void in the horizontal jumps, where we only had one competitor and scored zero points at the conference championships this past season,” said Munsch.

“Although they will help to fill the same void, they are very different from one another.”

“The addition of these two very talented jumpers will make us a more well-rounded team and put us in a better position to compete for a team championship next season.”

Jason Munsch
Jason Munsch

A Florida-native, Norville makes his way to Florida Tech following a decorated scholastic career at Lehigh High School in Lehigh Acres.

He holds personal best marks of 47-6.5 in the triple jump and 23-0.25 in the long jump and took second place in the triple jump in the high school division at the 2016 Pepsi Florida Relays.

Norville won three-consecutive conference championships in the triple jump (2014-16) and was a four-time district champion in the triple jump (2015-16) and long jump (2015-16).

After garnering the 2016 regional championship in the triple jump, Norville finished fourth overall in the event at the Florida High School Athletic Association 3A State Championships. He will pursue a degree in Psychology at Florida Tech.

Josh Norville
Josh Norville

“Unlike Ondrej, Josh does not have a lot of experience in the sport,” Munsch said.

“Instead, standing at 6’3” and 195 pounds, he has a ton of natural power and ability. Looking at Josh, there is no doubt that he is an athlete but it’s his character that I fell in love with.

“From our first conversation, he had very high aspirations for himself. He has overcome a lot of personal adversity in his life and is a fighter both on the track and off.”

Rapp comes to FIT all the way from the Dr. Anton Randa Grammar School in the Czech Republic. A sprinter and jumper, Rapp holds personal bests of 7.07s in the 60m dash, 10.91s in the 100m dash, and 21.87s in the 200m dash along with top distances of 23-7.5 in the long jump and 6-2.75 in the high jump.

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He was one of the top performers in his division, earning fifth-place in the long jump and seventh in the 200m at the 2016 Czech Republic Senior Indoor National Championships.

A two-time Czech Republic Junior National Champion in the long jump, Rapp finished third in the event at the Hungarian Multinational Meeting. Rapp plans to major in applied behavior analysis at Florida Tech.

Ondrej Rapp
Ondrej Rapp

“Ondrej is a great technician with excellent speed,” said Munsch.

“He has many years of experience in the sport and will also be a key contributor for us in the sprints. I believe that both Ondrej and Josh not only have the potential to make an immediate impact at the conference level but also at the national level.

“I look forward to working with both of them for the next four years and I am excited about the direction our program is heading. The future is very bright and will only get brighter as we continue to grow.”

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