Utah
Utah teen qualifies for ‘American Ninja Warrior’ semifinals
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ST. GEORGE — When Anna McArthur was 7 years old, she was sitting on the couch, watching reruns of “American Ninja Warrior.” Her mother, Jen McArthur, said the young girl looked up at her and said, ‘Mom, I’m going to do this someday.’”
Nine years later, Anna, now 16, stood at the start of “American Ninja Warrior’s” qualifying run — knowing if she completed the obstacle course and reached the ending buzzer fast enough, she would make it to the semifinals.
“I remember just … holding her shoulders and looking her in the eyes and just trying to talk through it, and saying, you know, ‘This is your dream. You just go out and make the most of it and do the very best you can,’” Jen McArthur said.
A few minutes later, the St. George native completed the obstacle course, running up to the buzzer and smashing it, qualifying for the national TV program’s semifinals.
While the entire season was filmed in March, the “American Ninja Warrior” semifinal qualifications aired the night of July 17. And, in a few weeks, viewers can see the outcome of the competition.
Jen McArthur said her daughter’s passion for “American Ninja Warrior” fueled her efforts and training throughout her life, especially after the opening of St. George’s obstacle course training facility, “The Grip.”
“She was literally one of the first, if not their first customer, saying, ‘Sign me up,’” she said, laughing.
The young Utah athlete practiced obstacle courses and exercises at the St. George facility throughout her teenage years, dedicating herself to hours of training in hopes of someday competing on the show.
She “had a natural ability from the beginning, which was crazy and fun,” Jen McArthur said of Anna. “She’s always just been so driven on her own and loved every second of it.”
And while the teenage athlete enjoyed preparing to apply for the competition, Anna also noted how training still posed its difficulties.
“One of the challenges, for me, was just taking the time to do all the training to prepare for it,” she said. “It was pretty taxing on my body and I always had to come home from training and do some recovery because my body was just so sore and tired. But I think, honestly, the experience was so amazing, and I wouldn’t change anything.”
“American Ninja Warrior” ended up changing its age qualifications for competition — shifting the minimum age from 19 to 15 — which led Anna to try out for the show in December 2022.
“They have like a ton of applications come through, so when I applied, I really thought nothing of it,” she said. “When I got the call, I was super in shock and surprised and was not expecting it — and so I just immediately started crying.”
She received her acceptance into the show in February, then traveled to Los Angeles a month later to film the competition.
Now, as the show’s been airing, she and her family members have been able to watch her compete. Seeing herself on the TV, competing on her dream show, has “probably been the most surreal experience that I’ll ever have in my life,” the young athlete said.
When the semifinals’ qualifying run aired, Jen McArthur noted there were “probably about 70 or 80 people in our house, cheering her on.”
“We’re just so grateful that she had the opportunity and was able to, you know, do so well,” she said.
This isn’t the only season Anna will compete — when she was filming for the competition in March, she competed in season 15 and then, a week later, filmed for season 16.
The young athlete said she wants to compete “for as long as I possibly can.”
“The whole experience of just the show, ‘American Ninja Warrior,’ and just the people, and doing local competitions, as well — it’s all just been so great and so fun,” she said. “So, I think I’m just gonna be doing it for as long as I can.”
Her mother added that the entire experience has been “surreal” for her, as well, and said she’s grateful Anna was able to fulfill the dream she’d told her about nine years ago.
“It was just so special,” Jen McArthur said. “It’s crazy to think that at 16 years old, she’s living out a childhood dream that she never would have thought would have probably come that soon.”