PROVE YOUR MOVES
PROVE YOUR MOVES
(2023 changes in red)
Who are we?
Created by Australian Ninja Warrior and Sasuke Vietnam Mark Ravi for the ninjas of Australia, the Ninja Challenge League became Ausrtalia’s first nationwide ninja sports league featuring adult and youth competitions in ninja gyms across Australia, with partnerships with international competitions.
What is our goal?
The goal of the Ninja Challenge League is to grow the budding Australian ninja community and provide an opportunity for adults and children of all ability levels to develop and test their ninja skills under pressure through a series of safe, high-quality competitions culminating in a national Finals.
Above all else, the Ninja Challenge League is about fairness and equal opportunity – it doesn’t matter whether you just won Australian Ninja Warrior or it’s your first time attempting a ninja competition, you are given the same opportunity to prove your moves.
How does it work?
Adult and youth competitors compete at official Ninja Challenge League Qualifiers to earn their spot at the Ninja Challenge League Finals held in early October each year.
Competitors get one attempt to clear the course and are ranked based on who gets the furthest in the fastest time.
Where possible, the course for each qualifier will be posted online at least two weeks before the event to allow competitors time to train beforehand.
There is no overall time limit at qualifiers, but competitors will be restricted to 20 seconds of rest between obstacles, with the exception of warped walls, which allow for 30 seconds’ rest between attempts.
When an adult or young adult competitor fails an obstacle or is disqualified, the clock will stop and this will represent their official result, but all ninjas will be allowed 2 minutes from that point to attempt as many of the remaining obstacles as possible within that time for fun.
When a youth competitor fails an obstacle or is disqualified for the first time, the clock will stop and this will represent their official result, but they will be able to attempt each of the remaining obstacles once.
Adult qualifiers are open to all competitors turning 15 in 2023 and older, with competitors born between 2006 and 2008 able to choose between the adult divisions or a separate young adult division.
A single adult qualifier is capped at 50 competitors, with the number of adult male, adult female and young adult qualifying spots available at each event ranging from 1 to 10 based on the number of competitors in each division at each qualifier.
However, a competitor who finishes last overall at an event is unable to qualify at that event (even on countbacks), unless they are the only competitor in their division or they finish last despite clearing the course. For example, at an event with 15 women and one man, a man who finishes last overall will still qualify for Finals, because there were no other competitors in the male division.
Youth qualifiers are separated into four age divisions based on year of birth:
Each youth division is typically capped at 20 competitors per youth qualifier, with boys and girls competing for the same qualifying spots, with the number of spots available at each event ranging from 1 to 10 based on the number of combined competitors in each division at that qualifier.
However, a youth competitor who finishes last overall at an event is unable to qualify at that event (even on countbacks), unless they are the only competitor in their division or finish last despite clearing the course. For example, if a competitor finishes fifth out of five competitors but the other four have already qualified, the last-place finisher will not be eligible for a qualifying spot unless they clear the course.
In addition to competing for qualifying spots, adult and youth competitors earn points at each qualifier based on where they finished in comparison to other competitors at a given event, whether they finished the course and whether they finished in the top three in their division.
In the event that a host facility has more than 20 athletes in a youth division wanting to sign up, only the top 20 youth athletes in that division will earn points at that event.
An adult competitor’s three highest-scoring events are used to rank them on the national leaderboard so they can track where sit in comparison to fellow ninjas across Australia.
A youth competitor’s three highest-scoring events are used to rank them on the national leaderboard so they can track where sit in comparison to fellow ninjas across Australia.
The points earned at qualifiers will determine the run order for all stages of the Ninja Challenge League Finals.
Running later on Stages One to Three can represent a big advantage as competitors get the opportunity to watch other people attempt the brand-new obstacles, so we recommend ninjas compete for more points even after qualifying to ensure the best chance of success at the Ninja Challenge League Finals.
In addition, the adult competitor with the most points across their three best events at the end of the qualifier season will win a $500 cash prize, run last in all Finals stages, and appear as the logo on the exclusive NCL Finals t-shirt for 2023.
At the Ninja Challenge League Finals, competitors who qualify and secure their spots will compete on up to three stages filled with brand-new obstacles which they will be unable to practice.
Each competitor must complete each stage within the time limit to advance to the next.
The full rules and format for the 2023 season are available here.
How much does it cost?
All adult and youth competitors are required to pay a $30.00 fee for a membership to the NCL in 2023, which grants access to discounts from our 2023 sponsor OZIGRIP and on NCL-branded apparel on Live.Breathe.Ride, and helps support the operating costs of the league and provide a better competition in the future.
Entry to an Adult Qualifier is as follows:
Entry options to a Youth Qualifier is as follows:
All payments must be made online through the Ninja Challenge League website before the start of an event.
Tickets to the Ninja Challenge League Finals 2023 cost $130.00 for adults and young adults, and $125.00 for youth competitors, which includes the exclusive 2023 Finals t-shirt in the competitors’ preferred size.
The Ninja Challenge League Finals and the Ninja Challenge League Youth Finals 2023 will be held at The Compound Training Bayswater in Melbourne, Victoria.
The NCL Youth Finals will be held on Wednesday, October 4 and Thursday, October 5, 2023.
The NCL Finals for adults will be held on Saturday, October 7, and Sunday, October 8.
What sort of prize support is there?
Each qualifier will have prizes for the top competitors from our major sponsor OZIGRIP.
In addition, the Ninja Challenge League Finals 2023 offers the following prize awards for the top adult competitors of each sex:
The top men, women, young adults and youths at the Finals will receive special prizes from OZIGRIP.
In addition, the top adult and youth competitors at the NCL Finals 2023 will also qualify for the World Ninja League World Championship in the United States in mid-2024 and have the opportunity to compete with the top ninjas from America and around the world.
How do you sign up?
Just head here to purchase a membership or log in and then head to the schedule page to see a list of available qualifiers and sign up for the one closest to you.
Registrations for youth events are open until midnight on the Sunday before the competition or until the event reaches capacity.
Registrations for adult events are open until midnight on the Wednesday before the competition or until the event reaches capacity.
More competitions will be added through the schedule, but we will do our best to notify competitors via Instagram and Facebook when new qualifiers are added.
Can I just watch?
The Ninja Challenge League Finals 2023 will have spectator tickets released ahead of the event.
In terms of qualifiers, spectators are allowed to watch for free.
How do you contact us?
If you’re a current or prospective competitor and you’d like more information or want to ask about something not covered here, we can be reached at contact@ninjachallengeleague.com.
If you’re the owner of a ninja gym in Australia or elsewhere in the world interested in running an NCL Qualifier, contact the NCL Commissioner, Mark Ravi, at commissioner@ninjachallengeleague.com.
The NCL is run solely by Mark Ravi, who also works full-time during the week, so while we will endeavour to respond promptly, please be patient if there is a delay.