Sasuke (TV series)

"Ninja Warrior" redirects here. For the unrelated arcade game, see The Ninja Warriors.

Sasuke
Genre	Sports Entertainment, Obstacle Course
Narrated by	Ichiro Furutachi (1997–fall 2003) Keisuke Hatsuta (1998–fall 2008, winter 2010) Kengo Komada (April 2004) Wataru Ogasawara (2005–winter 2010) Fumiyasu Sato (2009– )
Country of origin	Japan
Language(s)	Japanese; English subtitles and dubbed contestant profiles in United States broadcast; English voice-over in United Kingdom broadcast.
No. of seasons	27 competitions
Production
Executive producer(s)	Ushio Higuchi
Producer(s)	Yoshiyuki Kogake Makoto Fujii
Location(s)	Midoriyama, Aoba-ku, Yokohama
Running time	between 2 hour and 4 hour specials in Japan, 30-minute episodes in the United States, France, and Finland, 23-minute episodes in the United Kingdom and New Zealand, 30- or 60-minute episodes in Singapore, 50-minute episode split in two parts in Czech Republic
Broadcast
Original channel	Tokyo Broadcasting System
Original run	September 26, 1997 – present
Chronology
Preceded by	Kinniku Banzuke (Muscle Ranking)
Related shows	KUNOICHI, Pro Sportsman No.1, Viking: The Ultimate Obstacle Course

Sasuke is a Japanese sports entertainment television special in which 100 competitors attempt to complete a four stage obstacle course. An edited version, renamed Ninja Warrior, is screened in at least 18 other countries.

Shot on location at Midoriyama, Aoba-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan, it airs on the Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) between Japanese television drama seasons. Each 3-hour special covers an entire competition; there are normally 100 participants. There have been 27 specials, approximately one new special per season (twice per year). The show is produced by Monster9 and is one of the spin-offs of Muscle Ranking (筋肉番付, Kinniku Banzuke), another sports entertainment competition, which currently airs on G4 under the name Unbeatable Banzuke. Until the 10th competition, Sasuke was broadcast as a special part of Muscle Ranking, but it became an independent program when Muscle Ranking was discontinued. The first competition was held indoors, marking the only time Sasuke did not take place outside. Competitions generally start in the daytime and continue until completed regardless of weather or darkness.

There have been several programs related to Sasuke. Kunoichi, perhaps the most well-known spin off, is a version of Sasuke restricted to female competitors only. There have also been competitions held for children and the elderly.

Applicants are interviewed or auditioned and trial rounds are held to test their physical ability until the field is narrowed to 100 competitors. Sasuke consists of four stages of increasing difficulty; competitors must complete a stage to advance. Before the 18th tournament, a 1200-meter run was held in order to determine the competitors' starting positions. Each competition is taped prior to the air date, edited for time, and broadcast as a 3-hour show.

An online game based on G4's edit of the show has been made and is available on the network's website. It is G4's highest rated show.

Competitors

The show hosts a broad spectrum of participants. While most are amateur athletes from Japan, national television personalities and Olympians from other countries, including the USA, Bulgaria, China and Korea, have taken part in the competition. Some of the more enthusiastic competitors dress up in costumes, bring props to the starting stage, or show off some of their talents.

Sasuke All-Stars

The Sasuke All-Stars are a group of six favored competitors, established by the TBS network, thought to possess the greatest opportunities to clear all four stages. It includes two of the men to complete the Sasuke course, Kazuhiko Akiyama (1999) and Makoto Nagano (2006). In the 24th and 27th tournament, a third man, Yuuji Urushihara, cleared all four stages, but he is not considered an All-Star

The six consist of:

• Kazuhiko Akiyama, a crab fisherman.

Akiyama's results:

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
2nd	100	Failed Wall Lifting	Second
3rd	99	Failed Wall Lifting	Second
4th	86	Total Victory (6.00 seconds to spare)	Final
5th	Did Not Compete
6th	100	Failed Jump Hang	First
7th	99	Failed Jump Hang	First
8th	99	Failed Jump Hang	First
9th	100	Failed Quintuple Step	First
10th	981	Failed Warped Wall	First
11th	99	Failed Body Prop	Third
12th	97	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
13th	91	Failed Crooked Wall	First
14th	71	Failed Warped Wall	First
15th	81	Failed Warped Wall	First
16th	71	Failed Metal Spin	Second
17th	71	Failed Circle Slider	First
18th	Did Not Compete
19th	Did Not Compete
20th	1901	Failed Halfpipe Attack	First
21st	Did Not Compete
22nd	20	Failed Halfpipe Attack	First
23rd	Did Not Compete
24th	62	Failed Warped Wall	First
25th	98	Failed Warped Wall	First

• Makoto Nagano, a fisherman. Known for reaching the final stage more than anyone else. To see his victorious run in Competition 17 click this link label:

Nagano's results:

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
7th	87	Failed Warped Wall	First
8th	41	Failed Warped Wall	First
9th	61	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
10th	999	Failed Jump Hang	First
11th	96	Failed Rope Climb	Final
12th	100	Failed Rope Climb (by 0.11 seconds)	Final
13th	100	Failed Rope Climb	Final
14th	100	Failed Jumping Bars	Third
15th	100	Failed Metal Spin	Second
16th	100	Failed Devil Swing	Third
17th	99	Total Victory (2.56 seconds to spare)	Final
18th	96	Disqualified on Shin-Cliff Hanger†	Third
19th	100	Failed Flying Chute	First
20th	2000	Failed Downhill Jump	Second
21st	100	Failed Gliding Ring	Third
22nd	100	Failed Slider Jump	First
23rd	100	Failed G Rope	Final
24th	100	Failed Jumping Spider	First
25th	99	Failed Circle Slider	First
26th	99	Failed Jumping Spider	First
27th	100	Failed Ultimate Cliff Hanger	Third

† – Nagano touched the top of the Shin-Cliff Hanger after swinging from the second to the third ledge. He disqualified himself, admitting his error and bowing out after he reached the next platform.

• Toshihiro Takeda, a firefighter. Reached the third stage more than any competitor.

Takeda's results:

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
5th	74	Failed Spider Walk	Second
6th	93	Failed Body Prop	Third
7th	96	Failed Rope Climb	First
8th	71	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
9th	97	Failed Globe Grasp	Third
10th	997	Failed Jump Hang	First
11th	97	Failed Body Prop	Third
12th	95	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
13th	98	Failed Cliff Hanger	Third
14th	97	Failed Cliff Hanger	Third
15th	96	Failed Devil Swing	Third
16th	98	Failed Cliff Hanger	Third
17th	91	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
18th	86	Failed Salmon Ladder	Second
19th	96	Failed Warped Wall	First
20th	1995	Failed Rope Ladder	First
21st	98	Failed Hang Climbing	Third
22nd	92	Failed Jumping Spider	First
23rd	97	Failed Spider Flip	Third
24th	98	Failed Spider Flip	Third
25th	70	Failed Double Salmon Ladder	Second

• Shingo Yamamoto, a gas station manager. Only person to compete in every tournament.

Yamamoto's results:

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
1st	7	Failed Dodging Hammer	Second
2nd	20	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
3rd	13	Failed Rope Climb	Final
4th	98	Failed Balance Bridge	First
5th	98	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
6th	96	Failed Rolling Log	First
7th	97	Failed Spider Climb (injured†)	Final
8th	98	Failed Rope Climb	First
9th	98	Failed Rumbling Dice	Third
10th	998	Failed Rope Climb	First
11th	98	Failed Cliff Hanger	Third
12th	96	Failed Cliff Hanger	Third
13th	76	Failed Wall Lifting	Second
14th	98	Failed Curtain Cling	Third
15th	95	Failed Body Prop	Third
16th	97	Failed Jump Hang	First
17th	98	Failed Body Prop	Third
18th	61	Failed Flying Chute	First
19th	81	Failed Jumping Spider	First
20th	1981	Failed Halfpipe Attack	First
21st	71	Failed Flying Chute	First
22nd	31	Failed Halfpipe Attack	First
23rd	93	Failed Arm Rings (injured†)	Third
24th	96	Failed Tarzan Rope	First
25th	90	Failed Balance Tank	Second
26th	94	Failed Rolling Escargot	First
27th	81	Failed Spinning Bridge	First

† – Yamamoto was hurt in the 7th competition when he dislocated his shoulder and in the 23rd he re-injured his shoulder.

• Bunpei Shiratori, a government worker.

Shiratori's results:

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
9th	79	Failed Warped Wall	First
10th	Did Not Compete
11th	66	Failed Wall Lifting	Second
12th	77	Failed Rope Climb	Final
13th	99	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
14th	96	Failed Balance Tank	Second
15th	94	Failed Climbing Bars	Third
16th	96	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
17th	81	Failed Body Prop	Third
18th	95	Failed Jumping Spider	First
19th	82	Failed Flying Chute	First
20th	Did Not Compete (injured)
21st	83	Failed Downhill Jump	Second

He hasnt competed since the 22nd competition due too injury

• Katsumi Yamada, a steel worker known as "Mr. Sasuke" or "Mr. Ninja Warrior". He was once thought to be the one most likely to complete the entire course by the tournament's producers, but has not passed the first stage in over seven years.

Yamada's results:

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
1st	92	Failed Dodging Hammer	Second
2nd	91	Failed Spider Walk	Second
3rd	89	Failed Rope Climb	Final
4th	100	Failed Cliff Hanger	Third
5th	100	Failed Spider Walk	Second
6th	99	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
7th	100	Failed Rope Climb	First
8th	100	Failed Warped Wall	First
9th	99	Failed Wall Lifting	Second
10th	1000	Failed Pipe Slider	Third
11th	100	Failed Balance Tank	Second
12th	98	Disqualified on Spider Walk†	Second
13th	Did Not Compete
14th	99	Failed Jump Hang	First
15th	99	Failed Cross Bridge	First
16th	99	Failed Rope Climb	First
17th	100	Failed Warped Wall	First
18th	73	Failed Rope Ladder	First
19th	91	Failed Jumping Spider	First
20th	1999	Failed Jumping Spider	First
21st	96	Failed Warped Wall (injured)	First
22nd	81	Failed Jumping Spider	First
23rd	71	Failed Slider Jump	First
24th	80	Failed Warped Wall	First
25th	Did not compete
26th	90	Failed Jumping Spider	First
27th	91	Failed Warped Wall	First

† – Although Yamada completed the entire course, he forgot to take off his gloves before the Spider Walk.

Sasuke New Stars

The Sasuke New Stars are recent competitors who have made a name for themselves.

• Yuuji Urushihara, a shoe salesman and an Unlimited Cliffer member and the only man to achieve total victory twice.

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
21st	72	Failed Flying Chute	First
22nd	77	Failed G-Rope	Final
23rd	99	Failed Unstable Bridge	Second
24th	93	Total Victory (3.57 seconds to spare)	Final
25th	100	Failed Double Salmon Ladder	Second
26th	100	Failed Half-Pipe Attack	First
27th	99	Total Victory (6.71 seconds to spare)	Final

• Koji Hashimoto, a gym instructor.

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
21st	42	Failed Warped Wall	First
22nd	76	Failed Slider Jump	First
23rd	47	Failed Salmon Ladder	Second
24th	85	Failed G-Rope	Final
25th	60	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger	Third
26th	98	Failed Metal Spin	Second
27th	20	Failed Chain SeeSaw	Third

• Hitoshi Kanno, a maintenance man

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
20th	1976	Failed Jumping Spider	First
22nd	49	Disqualified On Spider Flip †	Third
23rd	96	Failed G-Rope	Final
24th	99	Failed Tarzan Rope	First
25th	89	Failed Balance Tank	Second
26th	93	Failed Rolling Escargot	First
27th	1	Withdrew on Double Salmon Ladder ‡	Second

† – Kanno touched part of the frame with his foot and climbed along the side of the platform, thereby going off the course.
‡ - In the First Stage, Kanno hurt his shoulder on the Spinning Bridge and had to fight through pain at the end of the First Stage and the Slider Drop. He cleared the Slider Drop but decided to withdraw to not make the pain worse.

• Naoya Tajima, a transportation worker

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
23rd	45	Failed Salmon Ladder	Second
24th	73	Failed Gliding Ring	Third
25th	49	Failed Circle Slider	First
26th	86	Failed Jumping Spider	First
27th	29	Failed Slider Drop	Second

• Jun Sato, a college student

Competition	Start Position	Obstacle	Stage
21st	44	Failed Log Grip	First
23rd	50	Failed Salmon Ladder	Second
24th	78	Failed Salmon Ladder	Second
25th	18	Failed Unstable Bridge	Second

Athletes

World-class athletes, including Olympians, have attempted Sasuke:

Japanese athletes

Several Japanese athletes have competed in Sasuke over the years including, professional team handball player, Daisuke Miyazaki, who was featured in the 21st, 24th and 26th competitions. His best performance was in the Sasuke 21, where he made it all the way to the third stage. In 24 and 26, he failed in the first stage, the latter falling off the Rolling Escargot obstacle.

American athletes

Various American athletes, including gymnasts (and twin brothers) Paul and Morgan Hamm, have competed in Sasuke. Paul made it to the second stage in the 14th and 16th competitions but failed to make it further – in the 14th, he cleared Wall Lifting but forgot to hit the button at the end before time ran out, and in the 16th, he was eliminated by the Metal Spin. He competed in the 15th competition as well, but he failed to make it past the first stage's Warped Wall. Morgan timed out in the first stage before he could attempt the Rope Climb in the 14th competition, but he made it to the third stage in the 15th, failing on the Curtain Cling. In the 16th competition, he failed the first stage's Warped Wall.

Decathlete Paul Terek competed four times. He first appeared in the 17th competition, making it to the third stage before failing on the Cliff Hanger. The announcer pointed to his immense size (6 foot 3 and 215 pounds) as a barrier to his advancement. After earning the title of Pro Sportsman No. 1 in 2007, Terek appeared in the 19th competition but failed the first stage's Jumping Spider. He helped G4 oversee the 2nd American Ninja Challenge competition in early 2008, but he did not compete in Sasuke's 20th competition due to his training for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing (though he eventually had to drop out of the running for the Olympics after suffering a torn meniscus in his left knee). He made his return to Sasuke in the 22nd competition but failed on a new obstacle in the first stage, the Slider Jump. He failed the same obstacle in Sasuke 24.

Henry Cejudo, gold medal-winning wrestler at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, competed in the 21st competition, but failed the first stage's Halfpipe Attack.

Levi Meeuwenberg, a free runner, first competed in Sasuke 20, where he was one of only three people to clear the first stage and the only person to clear the second stage. He failed the third stage's Shin-Cliff Hanger. In the 21st competition, he failed the Salmon Ladder in the second stage; in the 22nd, he failed the new Slider Jump; in the 23rd, he made it back to the third stage but again failed the Shin-Cliff Hanger. He missed the 24th competition but returned for the 25th, where he failed the first obstacle of the second stage, the Slider Drop. Sadly, he couldn't compete in the 26th competition due to breaking his wrist while participating in Jump City: Seattle, a televised professional parkour tournament. In the four times he completed the first stage, he had the fastest time out of everyone else, usually around 16 to 30 seconds to spare.

Brian Orosco, also a free runner, debuted in Sasuke 20 only to fail on the Flying Chute. In his next two appearances he failed the Salmon Ladder and Unstable Bridge. In the 25th competition, he made it to the third stage for the first time, only to fail the Doorknob Grasper. In the 26th competition, he was one of the four Americans to make it to the third stage but ultimately failed on the Roulette Cylinder.

Bulgarian athletes

Bulgarian gymnast and five-time Olympian (1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008) Yordan Yovchev (spelled on G4 as Jordan Jovtchev) first competed in the 8th competition. During that competition he reached the final stage but became the first and only competitor to suffer a 15-second timeout on the initial Spider Climb portion, falling when it spread apart. Rain and a two-second late start also hurt his performance. He made it to the third stage three more times in competitions 12, 14, and 16, failing the Cliff Hanger each time. He competed in the 15th competition but failed the Warped Wall in the first stage. He later came back to compete in Sasuke 20, where he failed the Warped Wall again. He also competed in Sasuke 23, where he managed to pass all of the other obstacles but timed out on the final rope ladder.

Korean athletes

South Korean gymnast Yeo Hong Chul, silver medalist in the men's vault at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, competed three times but has never gotten past the first stage. In the 7th competition, he was unable to beat the Rolling Log; In the 8th, he failed the Quintuple Step; in the 11th, he timed out on the Warped Wall.

Spanish athletes

Spanish gymnast Gervasio Deferr, 2000 and 2004 Olympic Champion in the vault and 2008 silver medalist in the floor exercise, competed in the 10th competition but timed out a few feet from the buzzer on the first stage's Rope Climb.

Taiwanese athletes

Li En Zhi (who was incorrectly listed as Lee Yen Chi in the US version and was mistakenly called Lee Enchi for years), is a professional rock climber from Taiwan. In his first attempt in the 17th competition, he cleared the first stage but failed the second stage's Metal Spin. In the 18th competition, he failed the Jumping Spider in first stage. After a two tournament absence, he competed in Sasuke 21 and was one of only nine competitors to make it to the second stage, timing out on Wall Lifting. In the 22nd competition, he was one of four people to make it to the third stage, ultimately failing the Shin-Cliff Hanger. In Sasuke 23, he failed the second stage's Metal Spin. In Sasuke 24, he made it to the Final Stage for the first time but timed out 19 meters up. Li became the third foreigner to reach the Final Stage since Yordan Yovchev and Kane Kosugi in SASUKE 8. In Sasuke 25, he went to the third stage, but he failed the Ultimate Cliff Hanger. He made it back to the Ultimate Cliff Hanger in Sasuke 26, but again failed there. In Sasuke 25 and 26, Li finished overall first, becoming the only foreigner to have progressed further than any competitor in consecutive tournaments. Li failed first stage only once (Sasuke 18) in 8 attempts making him the only foreigner to clear the first stage six consecutive times (Sasuke 21 to 26).

Mixed martial artists and wrestlers

K-1 mixed martial artist Genki Sudo has competed in four tournaments, failing at the Jump Hang (6th, 12th), the Duodectuple Step (23rd), and the Log Grip (24th). Another mixed martial artist, Sanae Kikuta competed in the 8th and 10th tournaments, where he fell off of the Rolling Log in the first stage; in the 12th tournament, he fell on the Plank Bridge in the first stage. Other K-1 fighters who have competed include Tatsuji (19th competition, failed the Jumping Spider), Yudai (20th competition, failed the Rokudantobi), Andy Ologun (18th competition, failed the Rope Glider; 20th Competition, failed the Log Grip), Bobby Ologun (22nd Competition, failed the Log Grip), and Bernard Ackah (19th competition, failed the Jumping Spider).

Former Pride Fighting Championships and Pancrase Japanese mixed martial artist and pro wrestler Ikuhisa Minowa, currently competing in DREAM known as "Minowaman", was featured in the 26th competition wearing red wrestling tights, pads, and boots. He failed the second obstacle, "Hazard Swing" after jumping from the swing, and missing the rope on the platform, falling into the water below. Japanese featherweight mixed martial artist from DREAM Hideo Tokoro, (announced as a "freelance fighter") was featured right after Minowaman in the 26th competition where he failed to grab the rope to swing himself to the other side in the first obstacle "Step Slider".

Several professional wrestlers have also competed, including Tiger Mask IV, The Great Sasuke (referred to as Great Ninja Warrior in the US and UK versions), Minoru Suzuki, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Naohiro Hoshikawa. Suzuki and Tanahashi were the All Japan Triple Crown champion and IWGP Heavyweight Champion, respectively, during their runs in the course.

Japanese entertainers

Several Japanese or Japan-based entertainers have taken part in Sasuke, including action movie star Kane Kosugi and his brother Shane. Kane made the third stage in the 1st, 4th and 6th competitions, failing on the Pole Bridge, Cliff Hanger and Body Prop, respectively. In the 7th competition, he made the second stage but failed the Spider Walk. He reached the final stage in the 8th Competition, becoming, alongside Yordan Yovchev, the first foreigner to make it that far. Competing in heavy rain, Kane timed out on the rope climb; he has not competed since. Shane timed out on the second stage's Wall Lift in the 2nd competition, then failed the first stage's Rolling Log in the 3rd competition. In the 4th, he came close to completing the first stage but timed out on the Rope Climb. In the 6th and 7th competitions, he made it to the third stage, failing both times on the Body Prop. In the 8th competition, he failed to get past the first stage's Warped Wall. Unlike his brother, Shane competed in the 9th competition, where he failed the Big Boulder in the first stage.

Other entertainers who have competed include Hiromichi Sato, host of several NHK children's programs; Shigeyuki Nakamura, a champion of the Muscle Gym event in Kinniku Banzuke; actor-singer Kazumi Morohoshi, a former member of the band Hikaru Genji who is now a solo artist; actor/announcer Kenjirō Ishimaru; and actors Masaki Nomura and Shōei. Sato debuted in the 18th tournament and failed the first stage's Flying Chute. In the 19th tournament, he failed the Log Grip. In the 20th competition, he timed out before he attempted the Tarzan Rope. In the 21st competition, he timed out on the Warped Wall. In the 22nd, Sato finally cleared the first stage but failed the Metal Spin in the second. In Sasuke 23, he failed the Jumping Spider. In Sasuke 24, he failed the Metal Spin again. Nakamura made it to the third stage in the 2nd competition, failing there on the Pipe Slider, but in the 6th competition he was eliminated by the first stage's Jump Hang. Morohoshi debuted in the 20th tournament but failed the Log Grip in the first stage. Ishimaru has never made it past the first stage; his two closest attempts, in the 16th and 17th competitions, timed out on the Rope Climb. Shōei made it to the third stage during the 8th competition, ultimately failing on the Body Prop.

Actor James Okada, a graduate from a martial arts academy, competed in the 7th and 8th competitions. In his first attempt, he failed the Jump Hang in the first stage, but in the next tournament, he made it all the way to the third, where he was defeated by the first obstacle, the Propeller Bars.

Japanese comedians

Several Japanese comedians have taken part in Sasuke, including Akira Omori ("The Monkey"), Koriki Choshu ("the most famous gut in Japan" and 2nd on G4's Craziest Contestants Poll), Passion Yara ("screaming wacko" and 5th on G4s craziest contestants poll), Masaki Sumitani ("Razor Ramon H.G." or "Hard Gay"), Yoku Hata ("Guitar Samurai"), Tetsurō Degawa, and Kinnikun Nakayama. Most of these compete for entertainment value and do not represent serious challenges – for example, Choshu's only accomplishment was being the first person to clear the Rope Glider in the 18th competition. However, some have seen success. Omori made it to the final stage three times in a row (1st–3rd competitions), a record that is shared with Sasuke all-star Makoto Nagano, but since then he has not been able to clear the first stage. Nakayama made it to the second stage in the 9th and 11th competitions; in the 9th, Nakayama failed the Spider Walk, and in the 11th, he missed hitting the second stage's final button by a split-second. Recent comedians include, Yoshio Kojima, who competed in 25th and 26th competitions, where he failed at the Hazard Swing, and funnyman Masumi Yagi was featured in the 26th competition but failed on the Step Slider. Cocky comedian, Eiko Kano (aka "Mr. Narcissus") was featured in the 25th competition and failed at the Step Slider, but got past this first obstacle in the 26th competition and failed at the Rolling Escargot.

Other notable competitors

Some other participants notable for their success in Sasuke include Shinji Kobayashi, a 37-year-old garbage man from Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture, who has competed ten times and made it to the third stage in the 11th competition (failing on the Pipe Slider) as well as the 14th (where he failed the Devil's Swing). Since his debut in the 11th tournament, he has only missed the 17th; however, much of his footage has been cut from the TBS broadcast. He usually competes in a blue or gray garbage man's uniform. In the 16th competition, when the G4 commentator commented on his wipeout on the Metal Spin, Kobayashi was mistakenly called an All-Star.

Former elementary school teacher Hiroyuki Asaoka, previously known as the "Sasuke Sensei" (in America: "Professor Ninja Warrior", in the UK: "The Professor"), has competed in several tournaments. He first competed in the 3rd competition, failing the second stage's Hammer Dodge. Asaoka was one of the three men to reach the final stage in the 12th competition, failing on the Rope Climb. He also reached the third stage in the 4th, 10th, and 14th competitions. In the 20th tournament, which was his last, he failed the first stage's Rope Ladder. Currently, Asaoka works as an illustrator for graphic novels.

Kenji Takahashi, a 33-year-old delivery man from Saitama Prefecture, has competed thirteen times, with a 5-year break between his third and fourth attempts. He reached the third stage in competitions 7, 16, and 18 but failed the Cliff Hanger each time. He then failed the first stage four times, in the 19th through 22nd tournaments. In the 23rd competition, Takashi failed the Gliding Ring. In the 24th, he made it to the final stage for the first time, but his support cable got tangled with the G-rope, and he timed out a few meters short of completion. In the 25th competition, he made it to the third stage but failed the Ultimate Cliff Hanger. He returned in Sasuke 26, but failed the Rolling Escargot.

American Navy salvage diver Travis Schraeder made his debut in the 4th competition, making it to the third stage. There, he reached the Pipe Slider, but he pushed the pipe too hard, and it fell off its tracks, resulting in his disqualification. He was the first American competitor to reach the third stage. In his only other appearance in the 5th competition, he ran out of time on the first stage's Rope Climb.

Schraeder's partner, Kevin Lee, competed in the 6th competition but failed the Jump Hang.

Another notable competitor is Tomihiro Tatsukawa, the "Japanese Clark Kent", an insurance salesman who usually dressed in a Superman costume. He competed in the first ten tournaments but never cleared the first stage. He is No. 4 on the G4 Wardrobe Malfunction poll.

A dancer named Goku who competed in many of the earlier competitions is known for removing almost all of his clothes, except for an old-fashioned white thong, before he begins. He has never made it past the first stage. In the G4 Broadcast of the 12th competition, he was honored on the "Warrior Wipeout" for his failure on the Jump Hang, but was mistakenly listed as Sou Takei, who also failed that obstacle. Goku is No. 5 on the G4 Wardrobe Malfunction poll.

61-year-old Minoru Kuramochi, known as "the Octopus" because he usually brings an octopus with him, is the owner of the Edokko Izakaya octopus bar in Tokyo and is one of the oldest competitors. He has competed several times, never making it very far into the first stage. Despite this, he seems to be a fan favorite. In the 20th Competition's preview special, he welcomed the G4 American Ninja Challengers to his bar, served them his special octopus meal, and showed off to them his physical skills. He is No. 4 on G4's Craziest Contestant poll.

Toyohisa Ijima, a martial arts dance instructor and former member of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, competed in the first several tournaments. He is known as the "Japanese Bruce Lee" because of his resemblance to the late action star, which extends to dressing and acting like him. He has only made it past the first stage in the 1st tournament; in the 11th tournament, he missed hitting the final button on the Rope Climb by a split second because he had wasted time posing for the crowd after completing each obstacle. He is No. 3 on G4's Craziest Contestant poll.

Hibari Igano, a transsexual who is a former dancer-turned-action star, usually referred to simply as Hibari and known as the "World's Toughest Transsexual", also competed in several early tournaments. She never made it past the first stage. She is No. 2 on G4's Wardrobe Malfunction poll for her appearance in the 7th competition.

The youngest competitor to pass the first stage, Kota Honma, was 16 years old during the 17th competition. He was also the youngest participant – 13 years old in the 13th Competition – until Sasuke 24. Kota has built a model of the full Sasuke course, including a qualifying round. He has also demonstrated his hobby of juggling on the first stage starting platform. Before the 17th competition, he trained six days per week with his school's track and field team.

Tien Dinh, a background dancer for Ashanti who appeared on the Soul Train Music Awards, competed on Sasuke in 2004.

Ken Yasuda, coach of the Tokyo Sabres of the IFL, competed in the 4th, 5th, and 13th tournaments. He failed the balance bridge in his first attempt. In his other two tries, he fell off the Rolling Log.

A President Barack Obama look-alike competed on Ninja Warrior where he failed on the Circle Hammer and fell into the water on the 22nd tournament.

Koji Yamada is a 34-year-old fireman from the Gifu Prefecture with just three percent body fat. In his debut in the 12th competition, he wore No. 1 and became the first and only person to wear that number and make it to the third stage. In that competition, he made it all the way to the third stage obstacle, the Cliffhanger, before failing. In the 13th competition, he failed the redesigned Jump Hang, and in the 14th, he timed out on the Warped Wall. He made it to the third stage in the 15th and 16th competitions, failing the Jumping Bars and the Pipe Slider, respectively. In the 17th, he failed a second stage obstacle, the Metal Spin. He was one of two competitors to pass the first stage of the 19th competition, ultimately timing out on the Salmon Ladder. G4TV dubs his first name as Yasushi, possibly to avoid confusion with Katsumi Yamada or because of translation issues.^{[citation needed]}

Tomokazu Tanaka was the show's first competitor. He put on an impressive run but had trouble at the Wicked Wall/Hill Climb and ran out of time at the Subduction Zone/Mountain Climb.

Women in Sasuke

The only woman to have completed the first stage is former Super Sentai stuntwoman Chie Nishimura, who did so in the 2nd tournament. She attempted the second stage's Spider Walk in a non-optimal fashion, because her legs were too short to reach across the obstacle the proper way, and failed. She also competed in Sasuke 3 but failed the Rolling Log. She hasn't competed in Sasuke since.

Masami Yusa (G4 mislists her first name as "Miyabi" in some tournaments), a beach flag champion, has competed 7 times. She debuted in Sasuke 6 but failed the Barrel Climb. In the Sasuke 13 trials, she became the first woman to beat the Jump Hang, although she timed out there. During the actual competition, she was able to grab on to the redesigned Jump Hang, but she misjudged her jump, slammed into the platform, and fell into the water. In Sasuke 14, she became the first woman to beat the Jump Hang and the Crooked Wall in competition, but she ultimately timed out on the Warped Wall.

American Ninja Challenges

Main article: American ninja challenge

In Fall 2007, the G4 network held a contest called the American Ninja Challenge, whose grand prize was a trip to Japan to compete in Sasuke's 19th competition. Ten semifinalist videos were selected on August 3 via internet poll to determine three finalists who would appear on G4's Attack of the Show! on August 28–30 to demonstrate their Ninja Warrior skills. On August 31, Michigan State University Economics student Colin Bell and the runner-up, Greenville, South Carolina native Brett Sims, were both selected, and they became the subjects of an hour-long G4 special on November 14 during G4's Ninjafest. Ultimately, both Colin and Brett qualified for the course thanks to their impressive physical abilities, but they both failed the Jumping Spider.

The second contest by G4 wrapped up in March 2008 and aired as part of G4's Ninjafest 2 on May 18, 2008. Levi Meeuwenberg of Ann Arbor, Michigan and Brian Orosco of San Francisco, California were both chosen to compete in Sasuke's 20th tournament; both are free runners. They competed alongside surprise guest Brett Sims, who was given the opportunity to return by G4. Sims failed the first stage's Warped Wall, while Orosco failed the Flying Chute. Meeuwenberg, however, made it to the third stage before he ultimately failed the Shin-Cliff Hanger.

The third contest by G4 wrapped up in August 2008 and aired as part of G4's Ninjafest 3 on November 12, 2008. Viewers voted for their favorite competitors, the top three of whom would be flown to Japan to compete in Sasuke's 21st tournament. The winners were Brian Orosco (who qualified with a different video), gymnast Mark Witmer of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and free runner/stuntwoman Luci Romberg – the first woman to qualify – of Valley Village, California. They joined American Ninja Challenge 2 winner Levi Meeuwenberg and both hosts from Attack of the Show!, Olivia Munn and Kevin Pereira, to compete in Sasuke 21. In that tournament, Munn failed the Sextuple Step, while Pereira's run ended after his feet hit the water on the Log Grip; on the TBS broadcast, Munn's run was shown only in part while Pereira's run was cut completely. Romberg failed the Halfpipe Attack, while Witmer failed the Log Grip due to a severe ulnar nerve injury that he suffered while warming up. Orosco completed the first stage with just 0.6 seconds left on the clock but failed the second stage's Salmon Ladder. Meeuwenberg cleared Stage 1 with the fastest time, with 21.5 seconds remaining, but similarly failed the Salmon Ladder.

The fourth contest by G4 wrapped up in March 2009 and aired on June 21, 2009 on G4 as part of Ninjafest 4. The competitors' videos were judged by Attack of the Show's Olivia Munn. The winner, David Campbell, was joined by Munn and previous competitors Levi Meeuwenberg and Luci Romberg. Munn failed the new Circle Hammer in the first stage; Romberg failed the first stage's Jumping Spider; Campbell timed out on the final first stage obstacle, the Rope Ladder, and later told the sideline reporter that he "underestimated the cardio" involved in the course. Meeuwenberg failed a new first stage obstacle, the Slider Jump.

Results

The following is a list of currently available information of people who managed to reach at least the Third Stage in each competition. (Note: Since no competitor advanced to the Third Stage in the 19th competition, the list therefore mentions the two competitors who made it to the Second Stage.) Under each competition, the results are listed in order of best performance. Their names are listed along with their number (1-100) from the competition, and the obstacle/stage they failed to complete. In the 10th competition the number system ran from 901-1000 to indicate that 1000 competitors had attempted the First Stage, and then ran from 1901-2000 in the 20th competition to indicate that 2000 competitors had attempted the First Stage. All air dates are of the Japanese broadcast on TBS.

SASUKE 1

Aired: September 26, 1997

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 97 Ōmori Akira	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 11m up)
No. 96 Hasegawa Ken	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 8m up)
No. 72 Yo Takashi	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 8m up)
No. 49 Kawashima Takayuki	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 10m up)
No. 89 Kane Kosugi	Third	Failed Pole Bridge
No. 18 Yamamoto Yoshihito	Third	Failed Pole Bridge

SASUKE 2

Aired: September 27, 1998

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 97 Tanaka Hikaru	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 12m up)
No. 99 Ōmori Akira	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 7m up)
No. 95 Nakamura Shigeyuki	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 83 Yoshizaki Hiroaki	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 70 Ebihara Masakazu	Third	Disqualified on Pipe Slider†
No. 65 Hasegawa Ken	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 42 Yamamoto Tatsuya	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 30 Miura Eiichi	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 20 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Failed Pipe Slider

† Ebihara pushed one side of the pipe harder than the other, causing the pipe to fall off the tracks.

SASUKE 3

Aired: March 13, 1999

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 89 Yamada Katsumi	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 14,5m up)
No. 13 Yamamoto Shingo	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 12m up)
No. 49 Matsumoto Minoru	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 8m up)
No. 100 Ōmori Akira	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 8m up)
No. 54 Yamamoto Tatsuya	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 8m up)
No. 10 Hasegawa Ken	Third	Failed Pipe Slider

SASUKE 4

Aired: October 16, 1999

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 86 Akiyama Kazuhiko	Final	Kanzenseiha (6.0 seconds to spare)
No. 40 Miura Eiichi	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 3 Asaoka Hiroyuki	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 81 Iketani Naoki	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 94 Travis Allen Schroeder	Third	Disqualified on Pipe Slider†
No. 100 Yamada Katsumi	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 97 Kane Kosugi	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 95 Yoshizaki Hiroaki	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 71 Ueda Takuyu	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 43 Kawashima Takayuki	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 64 Satō Shūsuke	Third	Failed Pole Jump

† - When Schroeder tried to get the pipe across the tracks, he pushed one side harder than the other, causing it to fall off the tracks.

SASUKE 5

Aired: March 18, 2000

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 98 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Failed Pipe Slider

SASUKE 6

Aired: September 9, 2000

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 99 Yamada Katsumi	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 83 Hatakeda Yoshiaki	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 93 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 98 Kane Kosugi	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 97 Shane Kosugi	Third	Failed Body Prop

SASUKE 7

Aired: March 17, 2001

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 97 Yamamoto Shingo	Final	Failed Spider Climb (injured)^
No. 46 Takahashi Kenji	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 40 Kuboki Hironori	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 81 Shane Kosugi	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 95 James Okada	Third	Failed Propeller Bars

^Went 2 1/2 Meters up then fell down.

SASUKE 8

Aired: September 29, 2001

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 91 Kane Kosugi	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 18m up)
No. 59 Jordan Jovtchev	Final	Failed Spider Climb^
No. 71 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 81 Shōei	Third	Failed Body Prop

^ Jovtchev fell off the Spider Climb after the walls split at the 15 second limit.

SASUKE 9

Aired: March 16, 2002

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 61 Nagano Makoto	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 97 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Lamp Grasper
No. 71 Nakata Daisuke	Third	Failed Lamp Grasper
No. 98 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Failed Rumbling Dice

SASUKE 10

Aired: September 25, 2002

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 1000 Yamada Katsumi	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 961 Iketani Naoki	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 940 Nakata Daisuke	Third	Failed Lamp Grasper
No. 954 Asaoka Hiroyuki	Third	Failed Body Prop

SASUKE 11

Aired: March 21, 2003

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 96 Nagano Makoto	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 20m up)
No. 74 Kobayashi Shinji	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 98 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 61 Iketani Naoki	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 95 Nakata Daisuke	Third	Failed Lamp Grasper
No. 97 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 99 Akiyama Kazuhiko	Third	Failed Body Prop

SASUKE 12

Aired: October 1, 2003

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 100 Nagano Makoto	Final	Failed Rope climb (by 0.11 [1/9] seconds)
No. 77 Shiratori Bunpei	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 21m up)
No. 72 Asaoka Hiroyuki	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 20m up)
No. 95 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 97 Akiyama Kazuhiko	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 99 Jordan Jovtchev	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 96 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 70 Satō Manabu	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 1 Yamada Kōji	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 92 Kobayashi Masaaki	Third	Failed Body Prop

SASUKE 13

Aired: April 6, 2004

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 100 Nagano Makoto	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 22,4m up)
No. 99 Shiratori Bunpei	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 98 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 97 Kobayashi Masaaki	Third	Failed Curtain Cling
No. 90 Iketani Naoki	Third	Failed Body Prop

SASUKE 14

Aired: January 4, 2005

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 68 Kobayashi Shinji	Third	Failed Devil Swing
No. 100 Nagano Makoto	Third	Failed Jumping Bars
No. 97 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 91 Jordan Jovtchev	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 80 Asaoka Hiroyuki	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 98 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Failed Curtain Cling
No. 81 Iketani Naoki	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 87 Kobayashi Masaaki	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 76 Ishikawa Terukazu	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 88 Yamaguchi Kosuke	Third	Failed Rumbling Dice

SASUKE 15

Aired: July 20, 2005

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 96 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Devil Balanço
No. 94 Shiratori Bunpei	Third	Failed Climbing Bars
No. 70 Yamada Koji	Third	Failed Jumping Bars
No. 65 Nagasaki Shunsuke	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 93 Morgan Hamm	Third	Failed Curtain Cling
No. 95 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Failed Body Prop

NOTE: In Stage 1 Bunpei Shiratori was the last competitor to go due to the fact he suffered from heat exhaustion.

SASUKE 16

Aired: December 30, 2005

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 96 Shiratori Bunpei	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 91 Yamada Kōji	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 100 Nagano Makoto	Third	Failed Devil Balanço
No. 98 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 95 Jordan Jovtchev	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 89 Nagasaki Shunsuke	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 66 Takahashi Kenji	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 90 Iketani Naoki	Third	Failed Body Prop

SASUKE 17

Aired: October 11, 2006

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 99 Nagano Makoto	Final	Kanzenseiha (2.56 seconds to spare)
No. 87 Nagasaki Shunsuke	Final	Failed Rope climb(about 18m up)
No. 91 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Pipe Slider
No. 86 Paul Terek	Third	Failed Cliff Hanger
No. 67 Adachi Yuta	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 81 Shiratori Bunpei	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 98 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Failed Body Prop
No. 96 Nakata Daisuke	Third	Failed Arm Rings

SASUKE 18

Aired: March 21, 2007

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 96 Nagano Makoto	Third	Disqualified on Shin-Cliff Hanger†
No. 97 Nagasaki Shunsuke	Third	Failed Shin-Cliff Hanger
No. 98 Takahashi Kenji	Third	Failed Shin-Cliff Hanger

† - When Nagano crossed the second gap of the Cliff Hanger he grabbed the top of the frame with one hand, therefore going off the course.

SASUKE 19

Aired: September 19, 2007

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 79 Yamada Kōji	Second	Failed Salmon Ladder
No. 86 Washimi Yuuji	Second	Failed Salmon Ladder

SASUKE 20

Aired: March 26, 2008

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 1989 Levi Meeuwenberg	Third	Failed Shin-Cliff Hanger

SASUKE 21

Aired: September 17, 2008

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 100 Nagano Makoto	Third	Failed Gliding Ring
No. 98 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Hang Climbing
No. 97 Miyazaki Daisuke	Third	Failed Devil Steps

SASUKE 22

Aired: March 30, 2009

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 77 Urushihara Yuuji	Final	Failed G-Rope(about 22m up)
No. 49 Kanno Hitoshi	Third	Disqualified on Spider Flip†
No. 79 Li En Zhi	Third	Failed Shin-Cliff Hanger
No. 84 Okuyama Yoshiyuki	Third	Failed Shin-Cliff Hanger

† - When Kanno climbed up to the Spider Flip he touched part of the frame with his foot and climbed along the side of the actual platform, therefore going off the course and getting himself disqualified.

SASUKE 23

Aired: September 27, 2009

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 100 Nagano Makoto	Final	Failed G-Rope(reached the top)
No. 96 Kanno Hitoshi	Final	Failed G-Rope(about 18m up)
No. 84 Takahashi Kenji	Third	Failed Gliding Ring
No. 97 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Spider Flip
No. 92 Okuyama Yoshiyuki	Third	Failed Spider Flip
No. 95 Levi Meeuwenberg	Third	Failed Shin-Cliff Hanger
No. 93 Yamamoto Shingo	Third	Retired on Arm Rings†

† - Yamamoto's shoulder again dislocated shortly after beginning the Arm Rings and he forfeitted as a precaution.

SASUKE 24

Aired: January 1, 2010

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 93 Urushihara Yuuji	Final	Kanzenseiha (3.57 seconds to spare)
No. 85 Hashimoto Koji	Final	Failed G-Rope(about 22m up)
No. 94 Takahashi Kenji	Final	Failed G-Rope(about 20m up) Twisted up the G-Rope and got the safety wire tangled, causing him to stop.
No. 95 Okuyama Yoshiyuki	Final	Failed G-Rope(about 19m up)
No. 92 Li En Zhi	Final	Failed G-Rope(about 19m up)
No. 73 Tajima Naoya	Third	Failed Gliding Ring
No. 98 Takeda Toshihiro	Third	Failed Spider Flip

SASUKE 25

Aired: March 28, 2010

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 80 Li En Zhi	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger(3L)
No. 60 Hashimoto Koji	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger(3L)
No. 40 Takahashi Kenji	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger(2L)
No. 50 Okuyama Yoshiyuki	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger(1L)
No. 69 Brian Orosco	Third	Failed Doorknob Grasper

SASUKE 26

Aired: January 2, 2011

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 95 Li En Zhi	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger(4L)
No. 97 Okuyama Yoshiyuki	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger(4L)
No. 84 David Campbell	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger(4L)
No. 74 Brent Steffensen	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliffhanger(3L)
No. 61 Paul Kasemir	Third	Failed Doorknob Grasper
No. 92 Brian Orosco	Third	Failed Roulette Cylinder

SASUKE 27

Aired: October 3, 2011

Competitor	Stage	Obstacle
No. 99 Urushihara Yuuji	Final	Kanzenseiha (6.71 seconds remaining)
No. 62 Matachi Ryo	Final	Failed Rope Climb
No. 20 Hashimoto Koji	Third	Failed Chain Seesaw
No. 98 David Campbell	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliff Hanger(6L)
No. 100 Nagano Makoto	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliff Hanger(5l)
No. 89 Paul Kasemir	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliff Hanger(5l)
No. 57 James McGrath	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliff Hanger(5L)
No. 63 Ryan Stratis	Third	Failed Ultimate Cliff Hanger(4L)
No. 96 Okuyama Yoshiyuki	Third	Failed Flying Bar
No. 87 Ishikawa Terukazu	Third	Failed Flying Bar

American Ninja Warrior

Main article: American Ninja Warrior

The popularity of the American Ninja Challenge has led G4 to produce a version of the series featuring American contestants. The program, American Ninja Warrior, is produced by Pilgrim Films and Television, Inc. Auditions on G4's website ended on August 18, 2009. Open tryouts were held in Los Angeles on August 29 and 30, 2009, and were taped for the show, with ten finalists competing on the 23rd tournament of the original Ninja Warrior course in Japan in September 2009. The eight-episode series began airing on December 12, 2009.

The qualifying round consists of over 300 competitors, running an obstacle course strongly influnced by Sasuke's first stage. The course consists of the Quintuple Step, a Rope Swing, the Jumping Spider, a modified version of the pipe slider, and a much smaller Warped Wall. The preliminaries used a leader board, and the 30 fastest times moved on to the semi-finals, which included the preliminary course plus three obstacles, the Tarzan Jump, the Jumping Bars, and a Net Climb.

American Ninja Warrior aired only the American finalists during the Sasuke obstacle course. The Japanese competitors were later aired on April 10, 2010.

A second season was cast on G4's website as of April 10, 2010 and aired in hour long specials starting December 8, 2010. The top 10 contestants would participate in Sasuke 26. Three episodes were run for the first two weeks. The first three episodes covered the opening round of the competition, the fourth covered the semifinals. This was followed by four days of a "boot camp" where the fifteen winners of the semifinals were divided into three five-man teams and put through several different Pressure Challenges, with the losing team having to complete a punishment while the other two teams got extra training time on models of some of the Sasuke obstacles (The Warped Wall, Double Salmon Ladder, Balance Tank, and Circle Slider). The teams would then run through a grouping of the obstacles with some sort of hindrance (Usually carrying something heavy between obstacles). The teams with the worst time would be forced to send two members to an elimination challenge, with the losing person forced to leave.

After boot camp, the ten final winners traveled to the Sasuke course to compete. Once again, only the American competitors were aired during the special, with the rest of the Sasuke competition to air later. The most successful of the American competitors in the past, Levi Meeuwenberg, withdrew from the competition due to a fractured wrist, giving his spot to Adam LaPlante. Five members failed in the First Stage: Patrick Cusic and former American Gladiators champion and gladiator Evan "Rocket" Dollard both fell from the new Rolling Escargot obstacle, LaPlante fell on the Halfpipe Attack and Adam Truesdell fell from the Giant Swing, a new variation of the Jump Hang, the only one out of all 100 competitors to do so in the whole tournament. In addition, veteran Shane Daniels once again timed out on the Cargo Net. In the Second Stage, four of the remaining five cleared, while Travis Furlanic fell on the Balance Tank, an obstacle he struggled on during Boot Camp. In the Third Stage, Paul Kasemir failed the Doorknob Grasper. Brent Steffensen made it to the Ultimate Cliffhanger before falling into the water. David Campbell, despite having the fastest times of all the competitors to complete (finishing the second stage with over 24 seconds left) failed at the Ultimate Cliffhanger as well. Brian Orosco fell at the very first obstacle, the Roulette Cylinder, which he had passed easily in the previous competition. While the $250,000 prize went unclaimed, Sasuke 26 was the start of a successful showing by a collection of American competitors.

The third season of American Ninja Warrior debuted on July 31 on G4, again with 300 competitors at the tryouts in Venice Beach. While many top competitors were absent including Levi Meeuwenberg, Rich King and Luci Romberg, a talented crop of new competitors took their place including Denver Broncos wide receiver Matt Willis, who finished the course but did not qualify for boot camp. Other notable competitors who failed to advance to boot camp included two-time Sasuke veteran Shane Daniels, season two veterans Evan "Rocket" Dollard, Adam LaPlante and Patrick Cusic, top first round qualifiers from the previous season Trevor Vaughn and David Money, and former world freerunning champion Tim Shieff. In addition, professional freerunner and Survivor: China competitor Michael "Frosti" Zernow ranked in the top fifteen and was invited to boot camp, but injured himself and was replaced with fellow Jump City: Seattle competitor Jake Smith. Other competitors from Jump City who advanced to boot camp also included Brian Orasco, Drew Dreschel and David "Young Flip" Rodriguez. The level of competition in boot camp was noticeably higher in the third season, as competitors were only given one attempt at each obstacle in challenges, leading to large increase in time penalties. Promising competitors Dustin Rocha, Brandon Douglass, Alan Connelly, second-seeded qualifier Chris Wylceski and five-time Sasuke veteran Brian Orosco all saw their Sasuke dreams come to an end at boot camp.

Of the ten who advanced to Sasuke, nine easily cleared the First Stage. The only exception was Dreschel, who injured his knee landing on the Halfpipe Attack, and despite a valiant attempt at the Warped Wall, was unable to put any weight on his leg and stated on his Facebook that he will not be available for Sasuke 28. The high hopes of the remaining nine took a major hit in the Second Stage, as five more were eliminated including Rodriguez on the Slider Drop, Smith on the Double Salmon Ladder, and newcomer Travis Rosen and veterans Travis Furlanic and Brent Steffensen on the Metal Spin. The remaining four competitors made it to the Third Stage only to be outdone by the Ultimate Cliffhanger. Ryan Stratis failed to make the fourth ledge while James McGrath and fan favorite Paul Kasemir failed the transition to the fifth ledge. The last competitor, David Campbell almost made it through the entire obstacle but on the final ledge his grip gave out. Even though no one earned a $500,000 K-Swiss Endorsement Deal, the competitors at Sasuke 27 were by far the strongest group of Americans to date.

Stages and obstacles

Main article: List of Sasuke stages

Broadcast

United Kingdom

The American-edited Ninja Warrior episodes are broadcast in the United Kingdom on Challenge. The show has been re-edited to remove the subtitles. The on-screen graphics were slightly altered in the first three series; the red box in the corner for the Challenge logo is smaller. The "Ninja Killer" and "Warrior Wipeout" sections remain, but there is only one advertisement break halfway through the show. The show was voiced-over by Stuart Hall for its first 3 series, aired between 2007 and 2008. In the fourth UK series, aired in 2011, the majority of the subtitles have been removed, but remain for contestant interviews, and the graphics now match the US broadcasts. Jim North took over as the voice-over for this series. As of July 2011, all tournaments have aired in the UK.

Greece

The program can currently be seen in Greece as Sasuke on the Skai TV network every day at 17:30 (GMT + 2). The show is voiced-over by Akindynos Gikas and Kostas Papageorgiou.

Serbia

The program can currently be seen in Serbia as Nindža Ratnici (Ninja Warriors) on the Fox Televizija every day at 20:00 (GMT + 1). The show is voiced-over by Ivan Tešanović and Miljan Milićević.

Singapore

The program broadcast in Singapore is the non-edited version of Ninja Warrior, with the exception of the subtitles being white instead of yellow. The program was formerly broadcast on MediaCorp Channel 5 every Wednesday at 20:30 (GMT + 8) and screened two episodes back to back. It was later moved to Thursday at 20:30 (GMT + 8), airing one episode. The show's run ended with the 17th competition.

The show returned on December 23, 2009, airing Wednesdays at 20:00, showing at various times two episodes, three episodes, or a single episode.

The show's run ended with the 24th competition.

Indonesia

The program broadcast in Indonesia is the G4 version of Ninja Warrior, including the "Ninja Killer" and "Warrior Wipeout" sections. The show is dubbed in Indonesian language and broadcast daily at 09:00 (GMT + 7). Usually two thirty-minute episodes are aired. in TPI (Now MNC TV)

Italy

The "Ninja Warior" version of the program is broadcast in Italy on GXT or on GXT +1. The italian version includes Ninja Killer and Warrior Wipeout.

South Africa

The program broadcast in South Africa is the SONY MAX CHANNEL version of Ninja Warrior, with the "Ninja Killer" and "Warrior Wipeout" sections.

Germany

The Ninja Warrior version of the program is broadcast in Germany on RTL II and DSF.

Turkey

The Ninja Warrior version of the program is broadcast in Turkey on Fox TV.

Bulgaria

The program is broadcast in Bulgaria on bTV Comedy as Най-добрият нинджа (The Best Ninja) weekends at 16:00 (GMT + 2).

Czech Republic

The program is broadcast in the Czech Republic on Prima Cool as Ninja faktor (Ninja Factor).

Slovak Republic

The program is broadcast in the Slovak Republic on JOJ Plus as Ninja faktor (Ninja Factor).

Australia

The program is broadcast in Australia on SBS Two. The play-by-play commentary and interviews with participants are subtitled in English, while the introduction, player profiles, and replays have been dubbed by a voice actor.

Bosnia

The program can currently be seen in the Bosnia as Nindža Ratnici (Ninja Warriors) every day from Monday until Friday at 18:20 (GMT+1) on the Hayat TV channel and on Mreža Plus syndicated TV program.

Estonia

The program was aired in Estonia as Ninjasõdalane (Ninja Warrior) on the TV6 channel every Saturday and Sunday at 19:00 pm to 20.00 pm.Running time was 30-minute per episode.

Lithuania

Kovotojas Nindzė on TV6.

Latvia

The program is broadcast in Latvia on LNT every day from Tuesday to Friday at 13.00 local time (GMT+3 - summer time).Every day on LMK at 20.00 o'clock.

Middle East

The program can currently be seen in the Middle East as محارب النينجا (Ninja Warriors) on MBC Action every Monday at (20:00 Mecca local time / 17:00 GMT). The whole program is dubbed into Arabic

Results

Further information: List of Sasuke competitions

The following is a list of people who have managed to reach at least the third stage in each competition. The results are listed according to who went furthest, along with the obstacle and stage they failed to complete. In the 10th competition, the number system ran from 901–1000 to indicate that 1000 attempts have been made to complete the first stage; in the 20th competition, it ran from 1901–2000 to indicate that 2000 attempts have been made to complete the first stage.

Related events

The show Viking: The Ultimate Obstacle Course airs on ESPN2 and is also produced by Monster9 for Fuji TV. Many of the competitors from Sasuke also compete in the Viking competition.

Sasuke executive producer Ushio Higuchi co-created Muscle Musical, a live athletic and comedy-oriented performance featuring several notable Sasuke and Kunoichi competitors, who have included Ayako Miyake, Naoki Iketani, Sayaka Asami, Terukazu Ishikawa, Kayo Haga, Daisuke Nakata, and Rie Komiya, as well as other Japanese athletes and entertainers. Its popularity in Japan and its growing popularity in the United States has resulted in a long-term run at the Sahara Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

Every January TBS airs the Pro Sportsman No.1 competition, also produced by Monster9. Several people who have competed on Sasuke have participated in this competition.

On Odaiba island, Monster9 has built Muscle Park, an indoor theme park based on events from Sasuke and other Muscle Ranking related programs. Some well-known Sasuke participants, such as Katsumi Yamada, have made live appearances there. Sasuke champion Makoto Nagano was honored in a celebration where he participated in the ribbon cutting there. Since April 2007, Monster9 has been airing episodes of Muscle Channel, a show to promote Muscle Park, the Muscle Musical, and people and events related to Sasuke. Muscle Channel usually airs on BS-i on Thursdays from 8:00 to 9:53 JST and is hosted by Hiromichi Sato. Past guests include Katsumi Yamada and Shunsuke Nagasaki.

See also

• Kinniku Banzuke (known in the United States as Unbeatable Banzuke)
• Kunoichi (women's version of Sasuke)
• Viking: The Ultimate Obstacle Course
• Sarutobi Sasuke

External links

• Sasuke 2007 (Sasuke 2007 Autumn) – Tokyo Broadcasting System (Japanese)
• Sasuke 2006秋 (Sasuke 2006 Autumn) – Tokyo Broadcasting System (Japanese)
• Sasuke 2005・(Sasuke 2005 Winter) – Tokyo Broadcasting System (Japanese)
• Diagrams of the 11th course with measurements – Tokyo Broadcasting System (Japanese)
• Ninja Warrior on Challenge
• Ninja Warrior on G4
• Sasuke at the Internet Movie Database