Staff Sgt.
Randall Forsythe trains to compete on the TV show "American Ninja
Warrior" May 21, 2015. Forsythe, 375th Civil Engineer Squadron
firefighter, found out he was selected to participate on a special military
tribute episode in April.
SCOTT AIR
FORCE BASE, Ill. - Staff Sgt. Randall Forsythe, a 375th Civil Engineer Squadron
firefighter, submitted a package to "American Ninja Warrior" last
year.
When he didn’t hear anything back he thought
his opportunity had passed. However, in late April he was notified the show
wanted to do a special military episode featuring members of all branches. They
wanted him to be one of the members to represent the Air Force.
"American Ninja Warrior" is an
action-packed sports entertainment competition television show in which
competitors try to complete a series of the world’s most difficult obstacle
courses called “stages.”
Forsythe
said he wanted to do the show in honor of his father.
“Last year,
my father passed away suddenly and that’s when I realized life is short. I have
always wanted to be on "American Ninja Warrior," so I decided to
submit an audition video to set an example for my daughter.”
The brief video
was enough for him to be selected, and was comprised of examples of him
training at a gym called “KOR Komplex” in Saint Charles, Missouri. The gym is
set up for people with the goal of appearing on "American Ninja
Warrior."
“You may
think you’re tough, but when you start training for this specific challenge,
you are proven wrong,” said Forsythe, from Crestview, Florida. “The obstacles
test your endurance and strength.”
Brendan
O’Niell, the owner of the first ninja warrior training course in the St. Louis
area, said, “We have had a few athletes who train here compete on the show. My
goal behind ‘Komplex’ was I wanted to create an atmosphere that would be set up
for adults to participate in athletic training and kids to come in for fun
activities.”
Forsythe
said when he found out that he was going to be on the show, his daughter, a
gymnast, wanted to train with him. He says he is training her to be an
"American Ninja Warrior" when she is old enough.
