Tampa sends Jason McNeil to compete on ‘American Ninja Warrior Junior’

The 9-year-old’s episode airs on April 6.

click to enlarge Tampa sends Jason McNeil to compete on ‘American Ninja Warrior Junior’
Photo via NBCUniversal


It’s come to this.

America, clearly over watching washed-up CrossFit-ers try to conquer what’s tantamount to the most insane jungle gym on steroids ever, has inadvertently signaled that it wants to see a kids' version of ABC’s hit show American Ninja Warrior.

American Ninja Warrior Junior saw about 200 junior ninjas, aged 9-14 and from across the U.S., face off, head-to-head, on scaled-back versions of the adult courses. Three final winners from three age brackets will be crowned as the first-ever American Ninja Warrior Junior champ during the season finale on April 27, but semifinal episodes start airing on Saturday, April 6 at 7 p.m. EDT.

And, yes, Tampa has its own ninja in the race.

Nine-year-old Jason McNeil has been doing gymnastics since he was four years old. The 4-foot, 4-inch mini-athlete cruised through his seeding round and punched a ticket to the semifinal when his opponent, 9-year-old Bella Palmer, slipped as she transitioned out of the Tic Toc obstacle.

Not gonna lie, these kids are way more fit than I'll ever be — good for them. Watch a trailer for the show below.

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Ray Roa

Read his 2016 intro letter and disclosures from 2022 and 2021. Ray Roa started freelancing for Creative Loafing Tampa in January 2011 and was hired as music editor in August 2016. He became Editor-In-Chief in August 2019. Past work can be seen at Suburban Apologist, Tampa Bay Times, Consequence of Sound and The...
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