Sarasota's Own Ninja Warrior
Todays News
SRQ DAILY THURSDAY FAMILY AND RECREATION EDITION
THURSDAY JUL 3, 2025 |
BY DYLAN CAMPBELL
Provided photo.
There is a moment that occurs in every household around the country while watching American Ninja Warrior (ANW). One viewer takes in the action, looks at the person next to them and says, “I think I could do that.” The harsh truth for 99% of the viewers watching at home, however, is that they in fact do not have what it takes to compete on the ever-popular sports entertainment reality show, which began airing its 17th season on NBC this June.
Sarasota local Kyle McCreight had that same thought while watching ANW in 2016. It turns out that McCreight, who now lives in Parrish and works as an occupational therapist at HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital, was one of the 1% that could compete. “I watched a few episodes and thought to myself, ‘hey I could do that,’” says McCreight. “I ended up going to Live Training Center in Palmetto, which had a few ninja obstacles and met some guys who had been on the show before. I tried some of the obstacles and was humbled pretty quickly, but fell in love with it right away.”
That first trip to the gym started McCreight’s odyssey as a professional ninja athlete. It’s a journey that is ongoing—McCreight is currently competing in his third season on ANW—and recently advanced to the semi-finals for the first time on June 23. McCreight, now 37-years-old, applied to be on the show five times before first getting accepted for season 14 in 2022. There are six obstacles in the qualifying round, with the infamous 14.5 foot warped wall the final challenge.
“The first two seasons I made it to the fifth obstacle. I was so close both times, just one move away from getting to the wall and having the chance to hit my first buzzer,” says McCreight. “This year, when I got to that fifth obstacle I was tired, my arms were exhausted, but I told myself that there’s no way I’m falling here again.”
Supporting McCreight along the way is his three-legged dog Tre, a black lab that he adopted in 2019. Born with a birth defect that required amputation, McCreight rehabilitated Tre back to health, in turn inspiring “Limb Different” children around the world and working alongside the Never Say Never Foundation to provide prosthetic limbs for children. McCreight can be seen competing in the season 17 semi-finals starting on July 14, on NBC and Peacock.
American Ninja Warrior, Mondays at 8/7c on NBC and the next day on Peacock.
Provided photo.
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