Ninja Warrior's signature obstacle course is being tested for possible inclusion in the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
According to Deadline, Olympic athletes may soon be facing a new kind of challenge, as obstacle sports are being considered for the Modern Pentathlon. The tournament currently consists of five disciplines: fencing, swimming, laser pistol shooting, running, and equestrian show jumping, but organizers are looking to potentially replace the riding discipline.
Format owner Tokyo Broadcasting System Television (TBS) is said to be collaborating with several partners to trial the "ninja competition" that was made popular by Sasuke aka Ninja Warrior. The first test competition will be held in Ankara, Turkey on June 27, with another scheduled to take place the day after, following the 2022 Pentathlon World Cup Final.
"Sasuke/Ninja Warrior, which continues to win fans around the world, represents the culmination of TBS's long history of content development," said Miho Takashima, who manages the format globally. "We look forward to working with the UIPM [Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne] and FISO [Fédération Internationale de Sports d’Obstacles] to further expand the possibilities of obstacle racing."
Ninja Warrior started off as a Japanese sports entertainment reality TV show called Sasuke in 1997, which saw 100 competitors participating in a four-stage obstacle course. The series then expanded globally, spawning local versions in at least 18 other countries, including the United States, which adopted the format for the launch of American Ninja Warrior in 2009.
A sports video game based on the series, titled American Ninja Warrior Challenge, was released in 2009 for PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. The people that accepted the challenge and picked up the game had to compete across a series of daunting obstacle courses from the hit show to achieve Total Victory and earn American Ninja Warrior status.
Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.
Thumbnail image credit: TBS.