Bentonville teen progresses on American Ninja Warrior

BENTONVILLE — Owen Dyer is hanging on by his fingertips on the newest season of “American Ninja Warrior.” That is simply how he likes it.

“I like hanging on smaller ledges,” Dyer stated. “Virtually all of the obstacles within the sport sort of have one thing to do with a grip or some sort of higher physique power.”

Dyer, 16, of Bentonville, is one in all about 30 youngsters to formally compete on the NBC tv present, which this season launched athletes as younger as 15 to compete towards conventional grownup contestants. Greater than 400 athletes are competing this season, in keeping with NBC’s web site.

“It was only a dream come true for me, it doesn’t matter what occurred this season on the present,” he stated. “It has been the objective this complete time doing all of this. I needed to make it to the massive present.”

The thirteenth season of “American Ninja Warrior” started airing June 21 and featured qualifiers filmed on the finish of March in Tacoma, Wash., stated Brent Dyer, Owen’s father. Owen carried out effectively sufficient within the qualifiers to advance to the semifinals, which have been filmed in mid-April in Los Angeles and can air at 7 p.m. July 19 on NBC, he stated.

Owen will compete towards about 150 rivals within the semifinals, stated Brent Dryer. Episodes of the competitors will air into September, he stated.

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“American Ninja Warrior” was impressed by a Japanese tv present referred to as “Sasuke” that started in 1997, in keeping with the Web Film Database, a web-based multimedia useful resource. The recognition of the present has impressed spinoffs globally, in keeping with the database, in addition to the “ninja warrior” sport and athletic rivals referred to as “ninjas.”

“American Ninja Warrior” options programs with a number of levels and obstacles that require power, endurance and technique to finish, Owen Dyer stated.

“It is a combination of mountain climbing, gymnastics and parkour,” he stated of the game. Parkour entails transferring quickly by means of obstacles by working, leaping and climbing.

The West Excessive Faculty junior wasn’t one of many unique teenagers chosen for the present, most of whom have been aware of producers and had competed beforehand on “American Ninja Warrior Junior,” he stated.

Owen Dyer utilized as an grownup competitor in December in an effort to get producers’ consideration and communicated in his audition video he can be 16 on the time of the competitors, he stated.

“The worst factor they have been gonna say was no,” Owen Dyer stated. “It ended up figuring out very well.”

He discovered in February he can be competing.

“It was unbelievable,” he stated. “I nonetheless cannot clarify the second.”

The competitors has been filmed in full, he stated. The teenager stated he is restricted on what he can share about how he fared general towards the present’s $1 million prime prize, which is awarded to the ninja who can conquer all 4 levels of the impediment course on the Nationwide Finals in Las Vegas.

“You are gonna need to keep tuned this season. There’s some huge stuff that is going to occur,” Owen Dyer stated. “I feel the viewers are going to be very shocked about what’s gonna occur, and I feel this season’s gonna be historical past. It is gonna change the game ceaselessly.”

Getting a grip

Owen Dyer stated the course of his personal life was affected when he found the game three years in the past at his 10-year-old brother Hayes’ advice. He did not have an curiosity in sports activities previous to discovering ninja warrior, he stated.

“As soon as I discovered it, it simply clicked with me,” he stated.

The teenager now practices six days and eight to 10 hours per week at his residence gymnasium and Flip Facet Ninja Park in Lowell, the place he works as a coach, he stated.

“I not have a storage as a result of it is a ninja gymnasium,” stated Brent Dyer. “After we’re at residence, he can actually focus on all these small grip issues and actually work on the finesse kind of issues.”

The teenager practices on giant obstacles his storage cannot accommodate on the Lowell park, Brent Dyer stated.

The personal gymnasium presents obstacles much like these featured on “American Ninja Warrior,” such because the Warped Wall, a steeply curved excessive wall impediment, and the Salmon Ladder, which requires athletes to do leaping pull-ups whereas transferring a bar up a collection of hooked helps.

Lane Saling of Rogers additionally coaches on the gymnasium and competed towards Owen Dyer as an grownup this season on “American Ninja Warrior.”

“I am finished,” Saling stated. “I didn’t make it previous the primary present.”

He stated he is been impressed with how effectively Dyer has carried out within the competitors so far.

“He undoubtedly deserves it as a result of he is a monster.”

He generally watches Dyer follow at Flip Facet with disbelief, he stated.

“He’s so sturdy at simply every little thing in right here,” Saling stated.

Dyer stated the important thing to progressing within the sport is discovering what ability he likes most and spending a variety of time specializing in it.

“My favourite issues to coach is higher physique and grip, however then I am unable to overlook concerning the stability and decrease physique obstacles once I get onto the course,” he stated. “These are necessary to earn factors when you’re working the course.”

Future centered

Owen Dyer’s ardour for the game and grip obstacles impressed him to invent Dyer State of affairs Limits holds, which he stated are being bought to residence, ninja and rock gyms.

“You at all times hear folks say ‘I bought in a dire scenario,'” Brent Dyer stated. “We simply play off of our title after which name them ‘Dyer State of affairs. Limits.'”

The three.5-inch polyurethane resin sleeves may be screwed onto the underside of any 2-inch piece of lumber to transform it right into a vertical restrict coach, in keeping with product specs. The sleeves create 1-centimeter-wide ledges alongside the lumber, which athletes should use their fingertips to carry onto as they navigate the impediment.

Creating the vertical restrict trainers is a testomony to Owen Dyer’s dedication to the game. He desires to review enterprise administration in school so he can open his personal ninja warrior gymnasium sometime.

“Whether or not it is ninja warrior or extra simply health generally, I do know persons are at all times going to want health and a gymnasium,” Owen Dyer stated. “I really feel like it might be a sustainable marketing strategy to get into.”

Inspiring future ninja warriors has been one of the rewarding experiences as a ninja athlete, he stated.

“I feel it is tremendous cool to have the ability to say I helped affect and begin this work, as a result of it is nonetheless so new,” he stated. “It is laborious to say the place the top goes to be as a result of it is such a brand new, contemporary factor. So, I feel that is simply the beginning.”

Bentonville West Excessive Faculty pupil Owen Dyer, 16, a competitor within the new Ninja Warrior’s teen class reaches for a hoop as he trains Tuesday, July 6, 2021, at Flip Facet Ninja Park Lowell. Try nwaonline.com/210711Daily/ and nwadg.com/photographs for a photograph gallery.(NWA Democrat-Gazette/David Gottschalk)

Bentonville West Excessive Faculty pupil Owen Dyer, 16, a competitor within the new Ninja Warrior’s teen class reaches for a banana formed maintain as he trains Tuesday, July 6, 2021, at Flip Facet Ninja Park Lowell. Try nwaonline.com/210711Daily/ and nwadg.com/photographs for a photograph gallery.(NWA Democrat-Gazette/David Gottschalk)

Bentonville West Excessive Faculty pupil Owen Dyer, 16, a competitor within the new Ninja Warrior’s teen class flies between hand holds on an impediment as he trains Tuesday, July 6, 2021, at Flip Facet Ninja Park Lowell. Try nwaonline.com/210711Daily/ and nwadg.com/photographs for a photograph gallery.(NWA Democrat-Gazette/David Gottschalk)

Bentonville West Excessive Faculty pupil Owen Dyer, 16, a competitor within the new Ninja Warrior’s teen class climbs a peg board as he trains Tuesday, July 6, 2021, at Flip Facet Ninja Park Lowell. Try nwaonline.com/210711Daily/ and nwadg.com/photographs for a photograph gallery.(NWA Democrat-Gazette/David Gottschalk)