Jan. 11, 2007
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -
University of Louisville track and field head coach Ron Mann announced Thursday the addition of jumper Rudon Bastian to the men's roster for the 2007 season. A native of Nassau, Bahamas, Bastian will have three years of eligibility remaining at UofL after transferring from Paul Quinn College in Texas.
"We're extremely excited about having someone of Rudon's caliber joining our program," Mann said. "We've been able to make some huge in-roads into the Bahamas and throughout the Caribbean. Rudon is a very well-regarded athlete in the Caribbean, and he's a wonderful addition to our team."
In November, he was named 2006 Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations Junior Athlete of the Year. His 2006 track season included an 11th-place finish in the long jump at the World Junior Track and Field Championships in August, while as a freshman for Paul Quinn College, he earned NAIA All-America honors in the long jump with a third-place finish at the 2006 NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in May. Overall, he qualified for the NAIA indoor and outdoor national championships in both the long jump and triple jump.
Prior to attending Paul Quinn, Bastian held the U-17 Bahamas national long jump record and competed in the long jump, triple jump, high jump, 400m hurdles and 4x100m relay at C.R. Walker Senior High School in Nassau. A well-rounded athlete, he also lettered in basketball and volleyball in high school.
Bastian joins an already talented group of UofL jumpers led by sophomores Tone Belt (two-time NCAA All-American and three-time BIG EAST individual champion) and Andre Black (two-time BIG EAST individual champion).
The Cards will resume the indoor track and field season on Friday and Saturday at the Kentucky Invitational in Lexington, Ky.
