The American Ninja Warrior™ television show has been around for 11 seasons, and for the first time ever in the show’s history a man completed the obstacle in under one minute.
Leif Sundberg is the first man to finish American Ninja Warrior™ in under one minute: the man managed to complete the course in 00:58.75 seconds. Sundberg did the seemingly impossible at the 2019 Seattle, Washington City American Ninja Warrior Qualifiers in the Tacoma Dome. The episode aired on Monday night and Sundberg was one of the 96 athletes that took on the obstacle course.
He posted on his YouTube channel his historic performance. Check out the video below.
Make no mistake, American Ninja Warrior™ athletes are great examples of strength and fitness. Every year the course and the format changes, but every competitor needs to be capable of seriously elite feats. Here’s an impressive example of Sundberg’s training, which he calls salmon ladder lines: many performed with one hand.
He also recently posted a training video of L-sit rope climbs that would give any CrossFit® athlete envy.
Last year we caught up with Nicholas Coolridge, a four-time American Ninja Warrior to learn how American Ninja Warrior athletes train. He noted that the most important exercises include pull-ups, farmer’s walks, precision broad jumps, and slacklining to improve balance and precision.
The obstacle course that Sundberg completed in under a minute included, shrinking steps, lunatic ledges, barrel roll, broken bridge, lightning bolts, and warped wall.
Check out the final results below:
Obstacle List & Course Information
| Order | Obstacle | Ninjas Attempted | Ninjas Failed | Fail Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shrinking Steps | 96 | 4 | 4% |
| 2 | Lunatic Ledges | 92 | 24 | 26% |
| 3 | Barrel Roll | 68 | 17 | 25% |
| 4 | Broken Bridge | 51 | 8 | 16% |
| 5 | Lightning Bolts | 43 | 25 | 58% |
| 6 | Warped Wall | 18 | 5 | 28% |
After Sundberg finished the course, the arena erupted. The announcers let the world know that the 29-year-old had just entered the history books as the very first to American Ninja Warrior to finish under a minute. Congrats to the man.
Featured image from @leifsundberg Instagram page.
