‘American Ninja Warrior’ competitor battles through bloody head injury: ‘Incredible run’

During Monday’s American Ninja Warrior semi-finals, veteran Sean Bryan was eyeing a spot in the Las Vegas finals when he banged his head during the difficult Drop Zone obstacle. And at that point, he was just eyeing blood.

Bryan, who is known as the Papal Ninja because of his work with the Catholic church where he lives in Richmond, California, was moving through the course with relative ease when he arrived at the Drop Zone. The obstacle contains a series of bars that rotate and eventually drop down a few feet after the ninjas jump up and grab them. It caused plenty of problems for competitors throughout the night, including multiple head hits.

But nobody got it as bad as Bryan, who had blood running down his face within seconds of hitting his head. And he was definitely affected by the injury initially, nearly slipping while running up the Warped Wall.

With his worried parents watching via video, along with a group of kids and a priest he works with in Richmond, Bryan composed himself. He wiped some blood off with a big towel and knelt down for a small prayer, before finding it within himself to finish strong and complete the course.

Video Transcript

[WHOOSH]

- Have to prepare yourself. There's another big drop coming on this one.

- And he took it.

- [INAUDIBLE] shot [INAUDIBLE].

- He's hurting.

SEAN BRYAN: Am I bleeding?

- Did you hear that? Is it bleeding?

KYLIE MAR: During the "American Ninja Warrior semifinals" Monday, veteran competitor Sean Bryan was eyeing a spot in the Vegas Finals when he banged his head during the drop zone obstacle. And at that point, he was just eyeing blood.

- Boy, that blood is really coming down.

- Oh my goodness.

- Oh my God.

- You good, Sean?

SEAN BRYAN: Yeah.

- Matt, let's take another look at this hellacious blow. You could see he was on the inside of the bar instead of the outside. So when that thing dropped, it hit him right in the face.

KYLIE MAR: Sean, who is also known as the People Ninja because of his work with the Catholic Church, was definitely affected by the injury. But after a big towel and a small prayer, he was looking to finish strong.

- Look at that face. Got a swing over to the final panel. [INAUDIBLE] rotating around. Open it.

KYLIE MAR: Viewers on Twitter loved the gutsy performance from Sean with comments like, props to Sean for powering through the Ninja Warrior course with a huge gash on his face. That was incredible to watch. And we might have to give Sean Bryan a new nickname after that run. How about Rocky? Or would Sly Stallone not be too thrilled with that?

- Look at this [INAUDIBLE]. He has risen. The People Ninja is going to do it. What an incredible run. He never gave up. He never quit. The People Ninja is going to Sin City.