North Central College Athletics

Justin Rapp’s college choice came down to a question of atmosphere, as he followed his intuitiontoward an environment which enabled him to surpass his own expectations as well as the performancesof any other North Central College athlete in his chosen event, the shot put, before or since.

Having not received any recruiting attention coming out of high school, Rapp liked what he heard fromhead coach Al Carius and throwing coach Pat Gora on a visit to North Central and soon embraced asupport system which drove him to be his best.

“I was kind of mediocre in high school, and nobody really recruited me,” he said. “I wound up going (toNorth Central) with a couple of friends of mine, who I think were being recruited. At that time, I didn’tknow how any of that worked. I liked the philosophy not being so much about improving the athlete,but about improving the person. That made me feel comfortable.”

A self-described ‘late bloomer,’ Rapp began to show improvement soon after arriving on campus in fall1998, which coincided with a rise in the level of his own expectations for himself.

“Toward the end of freshman year, I started getting better, and I was right around the freshmanrecord,” he said. “That started driving me personally at that point. With the coaching and philosophythere, it helped give me the confidence that I could do it. I wanted to put in the work and effort andsacrifice to take myself to the next level.”

Thriving among teammates who celebrated others’ success every bit as much as their own, Rappemerged as a NCAA Division III All-American for the first time as a sophomore in 2000, placing third atthe indoor national championships before celebrating with the rest of the team as the Cardinals won the 2000 outdoor national team title on their home track in Naperville.

“It’s that environment where you’re kind of a band of brothers,” Rapp said. “It’s a selfless environmentwhere you’re all there with the interest of creating success for those around you. You’re not just self-centered and trying to make yourself better, but you’re genuinely interested in the success of othersand of the team. It creates that feeling of being empowered by everybody else.”

Also a College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) outdoor shot put champion in 2000, Rapp wonthe inaugural CCIW indoor shot put championship in 2001 and repeated as the outdoor champion,earning All-America honors in both seasons as well. As a senior indoors, he established still-standingNorth Central (55 feet, 10 ½ inches) and CCIW Championship (55’7 ¾”) records and secured another All-America award with a third-place finish at the national championship. A third straight CCIW outdoor titlepreceded Rapp’s finest athletic achievement, which came in the final meet of his collegiate career at theoutdoor national championships in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Sitting in second place by more than a foot and feeling a bit sluggish throughout the day, Rapp steppedinto the ring for his final attempt and fed off the energy provided by his team one final time.

“That day, I was just off,” Rapp said. “For whatever reason, I just wasn’t feeling it. The thing I rememberthe most, like it just happened, is stepping into the ring and looking at the other side and seeing just asea of red standing up, the whole spectator section just dominated by North Central. I just fed off thelove from my teammates and their support and the energy the created to lift me to that moment.”

Rapp uncorked a personal-best and North Central-record distance of 56’5 ¼” on that final throw, earninghim the win by a single centimeter and delivering just the second national title in a throwing event in theprogram’s history.

Now the owner of his own business, Rapp carries elements of the atmosphere he thrived within atNorth Central in his daily life, continuing to reap the benefits of a focus on helping others.

“I think the key for my personal success is that I don’t necessarily focus on making myself better,” hesaid. “It’s about how the people around me are succeeding, and how I can help them do that. Wheneveryone succeeds around you, then your success occurs naturally.”