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Trio from Liberty climb their way onto ‘American Ninja Warrior’ Season 14 premiere

UPDATE 6/6/22: For the second time in his three years of competing on American Ninja Warrior, Liberty University graduate student Josiah Singleton was one of 13 contestants to complete the obstacle course in the first round of qualifiers for Season 14, held inside the Alamodome in San Antonio. The qualifiers were filmed from March 20-24 and broadcast on Monday nights starting June 6 at 8 p.m. EST on NBC. Singleton, who finished the course with the fourth-fastest time, is one of 30 ninja warriors from the round to advance to the national semi-finals in Los Angeles, filmed from April 8-11 and aired on episodes to be announced.


Loftus, who recovered from a serious motorcycle accident in 2018, shows his horizontal flexibility on the set.

Recent Liberty University graduate Jeff Loftus (’22) took some degree of uncertainty into his debut appearance on NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior,” a reality TV show in which contestants attempt to maneuver through an extreme obstacle course with little to no room for error.

“You have to overcome that whole mental aspect of competing on the show, with all the lights and cameras. You never really feel ready for it — kind of like marriage and having your first kid,” said Loftus, who earned his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Liberty in May.

But he said his faith is what carried him through the competition.

“I would say it gave me more purpose going there,” he said. “Otherwise, it’s all just vanity and you’re competing, at the end of the day, to try to win some money and getting fame for being on TV — things that definitely won’t fulfill you. The way to enjoy this is to go and have as much fun as you can, meet people, share Christ with people, and be a positive influence while you are there. Every time you fall down, you learn from it.”

Loftus, along with graduate student Josiah Singleton (’19) and School of Divinity Professor Chad Thornhill, competed in the qualifiers round for Season 14, set to air on Monday, June 6, at 8 p.m. EST. The show was filmed at the Alamodome in San Antonio March 20-24.

This marks the second season on the show for Thornhill, also known as ‘Dr. Ninja Dad Chad.’ after serving as a course tester for two previous seasons.

This marks the third season of competition for Singleton (B.S. in Youth Ministries), who serves as student discipleship director at Hyland Heights Baptist Church in nearby Rustburg, Va., while pursuing his M.Div. in Biblical Studies. He completed the qualifiers course in Atlanta in 2019 to reach the city finals in his rookie season.

“It’s been awesome,” said Singleton, who is from Brookneal, Va., and is known as “Country Boy Ninja” on the show. “It has given me opportunities to talk with students (at Liberty) about what really matters in life, to show that your identity is not found in those things but in Christ and that you’re able to use these opportunities to share your faith with others … as well as encouraging one another as believers and competitors.”

This year marks the second season for Thornhill, who was a course tester for two seasons before finally making the cut as a competitor last year on his seventh try. He has always been a fan of the show, but didn’t start training to become a ninja warrior until completing his Ph.D. in 2013. Now, the professor of New Testament, Greek, and theology can model supernatural athleticism for his students.

“The thing that I get a kick out of is when students find out their Bible professor is an American Ninja Warrior,” he said. “It doesn’t seem like the two things should go together.”

Thornhill has battled through a variety of physical issues, including a spinal injury in 2015, to earn a chance to compete.

“Over the last four years, I was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome, a disorder that causes nerve compression, numbness, and a tingling pain up and down the arms and the hands,” he said. “I definitely had to adjust how much I could train, and that made it more difficult, but the sport brings me a lot of satisfaction.”

Josiah Singleton tackles obstacles en route to completing the course in his debut appearance in Atlanta to advance to the City Finals in 2019.

He draws inspiration from training with Loftus, who also has dealt with a serious spinal injury from a motorcycle accident, and Singleton, who is freakishly gifted in the sport.

“Josiah’s one of those people who is very naturally athletic,” Thornhill said. “He learns new things quicker than anyone I’ve seen, and he makes training so much fun, but also infuriating because he makes everything look so easy. He challenges us, giving us something to shoot for.”

The trio train together at Elite Athletics’ ninja warrior gym in nearby Forest, Va. They approach the challenge course as a platform to share the Gospel with other competitors and spectators.

“The opportunity is a rare one,” said Thornhill, who noted that thousands of people try out for the show every year and only a few hundred are accepted. “So to be able to do it with people who are friends and who I train with really made it a special experience. We used it as a way to show His love to all kinds of people, from all different walks of life.”

Thornhill said the ninja warrior community is tight-knit.

“Everybody really is rooting for each other,” he said. “It is a really fun environment to be in. I treat every year like it could be your last one, or only one, but you try not to stress yourself out. We were able to have a blast together, make some fun memories, and be able to play on the world’s coolest obstacle course.”

From left, Loftus, Thornhill, Elite Athletics ninja coach Carrington Osborne (who will also appear on the qualifiers show), and Singleton train together at the Forest gym where Thornhill serves as equipment manager.

Those who survived through the qualifiers competed in the semifinals, recorded April 8-11 in Los Angeles. The top ninja warriors there advanced to the national finals, filmed May 14-17 in Las Vegas, with $100,000 awarded to the overall winner or $1 million if he or she completed that course. Contestants cannot reveal how they fared before their performances air.

Regardless of how he far he may have gone in the competition, Loftus said the experience ranks among the highlights of his life.

“It was worth the years of trying and training and failing,” he said. “I had an amazing time, and it was super fun getting to meet some of my ninja heroes that I’ve watched for years but also meeting new contestants. It was an exhilarating time, one of the best things I’ve ever gotten to do, and I’m super grateful.”

After all of the obstacles he has overcome so far in his life, he has maintained a positive spiritual perspective on the high-stakes event.

“When you go to have fun or to be a light to other people, it doesn’t matter how you perform, because your attitude is still the same,” he said. “If you don’t do well but you don’t let the outcome define your outlook, and people see that you have a good attitude and are not bummed, they wonder why and it will stand out to them because they expect you to be upset. That speaks volumes to people, and it shows where you get your fulfillment from.”

 

Loftus, Thornhill, Osborne, and Singleton shine on the set in San Antonio.
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