The propeller bar. The jumping spider. The warped wall. Those are a few of the obstacles former 做TV gymnast Anna Shumaker 14 will face on Mondays episode of American Ninja Warrior.
This is Shumakers third appearance on NBCs family of obstacle-course-based reality shows, and her first time in the final round of competition.
When I retired from gymnastics I needed another outlet for myself, she said. I needed to fill the void that gymnastics left behind, so when I saw American Ninja Warrior on TV I just knew that was what I was going to do next.
She said her background as a gymnast she earned All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation honors three years in a row gives her a leg up in the televised competition, which can see athletes flying between obstacles, climbing a narrow shaft, scaling a curved wall standing more than 14 feet tall and more.
But she said despite the difficulty of Ninja Warrior, where a misstep will send a competitor plummeting to a pool of water, collegiate gymnastics is the more challenging sport because of the precision it requires.
Shumaker, who owns both SHUFIT Personal Training, a personal training business based in Sacramento, and OnPoint Nutrition, a supplement company, said shes accustomed to the balance and time-management skills required as a student athlete. The only difference is now shes balancing her time between business and training for competition.
Her posts on social media vary from promotional photos from the television show to nutritional and exercise tips.
Mondays episode of American Ninja Warrior, filmed in June in Las Vegas, will air at 8 p.m. Monday on KCRA-3 in the Sacramento region. Shumaker said shell be watching the episode with a few close friends.
Update Sept. 4, 2018: Anna Shumaker 14 got her turn on the biggest stage of NBCs American Ninja Warrior, and she said she's ready for another go. I am still really happy with the season I had this year, after a fall early in her run at the final round aired this week. Qualifying to the National Finals was a dream come true. Now its time to get back to work for next season because I plan on hitting some buzzers next year. The competitors who advanced to the second round will compete again Sept. 10.