James Sannella, a sophomore at Lawrence High School, recently appeared on the new season of American Ninja Warrior, currently airing on NBC.
Typically, only adults are allowed to compete on the show, but last year they began inviting teens they believed could be competitive.
Sannella debuted on the June 13 episode of the show. He qualified to move on to the semifinals, finishing in sixth place with a time of 2:22:01. Sannella said that getting onto the show was his main focus after winning his age division in the National Ninja League World Championship on June 28 last year.
Sannella began training for American Ninja Warrior, a televised version of the sport known as obstacle course racing, in the fall of 2018 and immediately qualified for the National Ninja League World Championships in Hartford Connecticut, held in February 2019.
He has qualified for each world championship since then, getting fourth place for his age division in 2020 at Greensboro, North Carolina, and most recently grabbing first-place for his age division in 2021.
American Ninja Warrior features some of the most elite athletes in the country competing on the world’s most difficult obstacle courses. The new season features more than 400 competitors and, for the first time in ANW history, the age limit to compete is being lowered to 15 years old.
The semifinals are set to start airing on Tuesday, July 18.
Ninja Warrior is a sport that has been rapidly growing across the country and kids of all ages are embracing it in record numbers. Some of today’s most promising talent are younger competitors and now teenagers will have the chance to compete with adults.
A top prize of $1 million will go to the winner, if they can conquer all four stages at the National Finals. To get there, competitors will need to make it through the qualifying rounds and semifinals.
Last season, “American Ninja Warrior” reached 35 million viewers.
