In less than a year, senior E.J. Dorwil became the state champion in the long jump.
Some work their entire life to be a champion.
E.J. Dorwil worked for less than a year to become one.
Maybe that’s not entirely accurate, because Dorwil, a senior at George Washington High School, has been a top athlete for his entire life and he’s always been taking part in sports, including football, baseball and track. But up until this school year, he was never a jumper.
Now he’s not just a jumper, he’s a state champion jumper.
“My coach told me I should try it because a lot of the long jump is speed, running, and I could do that,” said Dorwil, who won the long jump competition for indoor track at Penn State by jumping nearly 23 feet. “I did pretty good when I started, but then I worked really hard and I got better and better at it. It was all about the work.”
Hard work produces results, but even Dorwil was shocked when he found out his jump of 22–11.75 was tops in the state for the indoor season.
Dorwil also placed in the 60-meter dash, finishing sixth in the state. While he was proud of his accomplishment in the race, he’s both excited and shocked by his success in the long jump.
“Even after I did it, I wasn’t sure I had a great jump,” said Dorwil, who lives near Woodhaven Road in Chalfont. “To be completely honest, I didn’t think it was that great until I looked up and saw it. I was shocked. Once I saw it, I knew it was good.
“It’s really crazy that I’m a state champion. I’m the first one from the school in indoor track. It’s history for us. I’m really happy with it.”
Dorwil will compete for a national championship this weekend in New York.
There, he’ll look to continue his success in the long jump.
And he’s not going just for the fun of it.
“Track is different, it’s not like boxing, it’s not like football, I’m not going to get hurt by going up against the best,” Dorwil said. “I’m happy because I’m just going to there and see if I can win. I usually do better when I’m going against the best. That’s how you do better.”
Dorwil is doing well, but he still has the potential to be much better.
Growing up, he played outfield in baseball and running back in football. He enjoyed both sports, but when he got to high school, he started running track. Track was a good fit for him because he’s always been one of the faster players on his football and baseball squads.
But the downside to getting a late start in track, especially in jumping, is he hasn’t had a lot of tape to send college coaches.
His goal is to ultimately run and jump for a Division I program, but the offers haven’t been rolling in just yet.
He hopes that changes once the outdoor season rolls around.
“That’s the one thing that is scary, I’m graduating in June and I really want to go to college and run,” Dorwil said. “I’m going to let God take the wheel to put me where I need to be, but I really hope some of the schools start to reach out to me because I really want to compete. Division I would be great, but I just want a chance to go to college.”
He already has a major picked out.
“I’m looking at environmental science,” Dorwil said. “I’m really interested in zoology. I love nature, I love animals and I love planet earth. There are so many cool things on this planet. I’d like to study it, see how everything works. It really interests me. I’ve always liked science.
“I’d say the animal I’m most like would be the falcon. They’re not the biggest, but they’re great for their size. And they’re very fast.”
Before Dorwil soars into college, this Eagle still has some items he wants to cross off his to-do list at Washington.
He plans on taking a week off before he heads outside for the spring season.
He’ll likely run the 100-meter and 200-meter races and of course he’ll try his hand at the long jump.
His goal is to jump 25 feet by the end of the school year, and he’d love to pick up some medals. Two of the meets he’s looking forward to the most are the state championships in June and the Penn Relays next month.
“I want to drop my times in running and get a lot better in the long jump,” Dorwil said. “I’m learning things about it all the time. I’m getting help and I’m doing better.
“The spring will be fun. I’m graduating in June so I only have a little time to show what I can do. I hope I get a chance to get into college. That would be the best thing I could do.”
