Local ninjas making a run on 'American Ninja Warrior' — advance to semifinals

Two local ninjas are in the running for the ultimate prize on NBC’s "American Ninja Warrior."

Jonathan Godbout of Sterling and Alex Goodwin of Clinton ran an intense obstacle course in the preliminary stage of the competition in Los Angeles and qualified for the semifinals.

Godbout's and Goodwin's successful efforts were seen on the July 10 episode of "American Ninja Warrior," which airs at 8 p.m. Mondays on NBC. They are expected to be seen in the semifinals in early August.

'It was a good run'

"I trained a lot for it. That run I did feel especially in control," said Godbout, who smoothly negotiated the obstacle course with its many challenges and twists.

Goodwin "had a little slip" and hit the water on his run, but nevertheless, "I got far enough fast enough to move to the semifinals round," he said. "I'm feeling pretty good ... It was a good run. It was fun."

Godbout will be entering his sophomore year at Worcester State University this fall, where he is a double major in political science and psychology. Goodwin has worked at Animal Adventures, an exotic animal rescue in Bolton, for several years.

Both have appeared on "American Ninja Warrior" before and were longtime fans before they started competing.

'I do a lot of crazy stuff at the gym'

Men and women from all walks of life and every corner of the country compete in the popular show, now in its 15th season, with the goal of reaching the finals round in Las Vegas where they face a formidable four-stage course modeled after the famed Mount Midoriyama course in Japan. The winner will take home a grand prize of $1 million. Hosts Matt Iseman and Akbar Gbajabiamila call the action, along with co-hostZuri Hall. The hosts have said changes for season 15 have made the competition harder than ever before.

There was some Massachusetts camaraderie among the competitors in the July 10 episode, which also included Everett police Officer John Uga.

"I do know Alex (Goodwin). He trains at my gym sometimes. He's a good friend of mine," Godbout said. Uga, "is an awesome guy," Godbout said.

To have any chance on "American Ninja Warrior" a participant has to be very strong both physically and mentally.

"I go to ninja gyms. Obviously, I can't go every day. I do a regular normal gym. I do a lot of crazy stuff at the gym," Goodwin said.

He works out in 3-inch-high heels doing box jumps, back flips, agility exercises and squats. He often gets weird looks at the gym and even has been kicked out a couple of times because gym employees have said it’s too dangerous.

Goodwin keeps at it even though he isn't a fan of training in high heels. "Wow, heels suck," he said.

Last summer, Godbout climbed the equivalent height of Mount Everest at Wachusett Reservoir Dam, going up and down a 100-foot-tall set of stairs 291 times over the course of three days, equaling 29,000 feet.

"When you do hard things like that, you feel you live a month in the three days you do it," Godbout said.

"I definitely think in 'American Ninja Warrior' you have to be strong physically, but I believe if you put people in a gym, no pressure, 10 more people would finish it. No matter how strong you are, if you freak out when the lights go on you're not going to finish it," he said.

He said he doesn't feel, "I'm the physically strongest," but he also works on composure in his training and, "I think that's what helps me."

'There was nothing else on (TV) like it'

Godbout said he started watching "American Ninja Warrior" when he was about 8.

"I thought the people were incredible. I really loved the show and I looked up to a lot of people. I started doing ninja training when I was 12," he said.

He competed on two seasons of "American Ninja Jr." and then "American Ninja Warrior" seasons 13 and 14. "I did better season 13 than 14. Last year I did an early exit, but I'm back this year."

Goodwin competed on season 11 and would have returned sooner were it not for COVID-19 and injury.

"I've been watching it since the first season. It was definitely something I was very fond of. Every week I would watch it," Goodwin said. "The obstacles were not as hard as they are now, but it was super cool to see. There was nothing else on (TV) like it."

'It would just be life-changing'

Winning "American Ninja Warrior" would come with multiple satisfactions for both.

"It would just be life-changing, essentially. I'm trying to create my own animal rescue facility. 'Life-changing' meaning put me so far ahead for what I want to do with my life," Goodwin said.

Originally from Marlborough, Goodwin works with animals such as lemurs, kangaroos, lynx, bobcats and foxes at Animal Adventures.

"Since I started working there I've been all in on animals. That's what I want to do," he said.

He wants to open his own exotic animal rescue in North Carolina. The main reason for the move would be the New England winters. Even a ninja has his limits. "Get away from the weather," he said.

But close to home and far away Goodwin said he has been getting lots of messages from people since he appeared on "American Ninja Warrior" July 10. "All support, all encouragement, so I can't complain about that," he said.

Meanwhile, Godbout said, "Winning this show would would be huge. I don't compete on 'Ninja' because there's a million-dollar prize. It's about the sport — how much I love the sport. Winning the show would show my hard work has paid off and you can accomplish your goals."

Like Goodwin he has been receiving messages and social media attention following the July 10 "American Ninja Warrior" episode. Even more gratifying is, "friends and family, people you know, people at the gym coming up saying, 'Great job.' That's super meaningful to me."

Godbout is also a drummer with the multigenre band Devitalized.

At Worcester State University he said he likes to keep a low profile about his "American Ninja Warrior" exploits.

Still, classmates, "think it's pretty cool," he said.

In his first semester at Worcester State, "people, once they got to know me, they learned and somehow it came up. I keep it on the down-low, but I think it's pretty cool when they do come to learn."

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Locals advance to 'American Ninja Warrior' semifinals