American Ninja Warrior 2020: Results and Top Highlights from Episode 2

Evan Agostini/Associated Press

The ninjas returned Monday for the second week of the revamped Season 12 of American Ninja Warrior inside The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis.

This season is much different from previous years because of the coronavirus pandemic. Instead of traveling from city to city, everything is taking place in one location. Fans may not be in attendance, but ANW has set up monitors around the course for the ninjas’ friends and family to watch.

Instead of a buzzer being a guarantee to move to the next round, only the top 12-14 performers will advance to the next stage of the competition. With so many new ninjas trying to establish themselves this year, the veterans are working harder than ever to earn their spot in the next round.

Even though it is still an individual competition, veteran ninjas led teams of three with two amateur ninjas by their side.

As usual, the course received a few updates between episodes. Here are the six obstacles featured Monday:

Shrinking Steps
Lunatic Ledges
Ring Chaser
Rib Run
Ferris Wheel
Warped Wall

This week also saw the return of the Power Tower. The two fastest runners of the night competed to see who gets to bring the other two ninjas on their team to the semifinals regardless of how they finish.

Cassie Dierks was the first runner of the night. She owns a cat cafe and had one of her rescues watching her on the monitor next to the course. Unfortunately, she lacked the jumping ability of her feline friends and fell on the second obstacle.

Last year, Taylor Amann impressed a lot of fans with her performance on the course. She and two of her fellow pole-vaulters ran the course. Amann made it to the fourth obstacle with a quick time before falling on Rib Run.

Ninja Warrior @ninjawarrior

With her family cheering her on, there’s no way @_Ashleyyyyyy_ was going to NOT hit that buzzer! 📣 https://t.co/oxc1YMMonO

The show paused to play a special video about ninjas supporting the Black Live Matter movement before JJ Woods took to the course. The fan favorite went out on Ring Chaser in one of the most surprising falls of the night.

Newcomer Ashley McConville was the first ninja of the night to make it up the Warped Wall and hit the buzzer, becoming only the 10th woman to make it up the wall on a qualifying course. Her boyfriend, Caleb Bergstrom, fell on just the third obstacle after making it to Las Vegas last year.

Ninja Warrior @ninjawarrior

.@WeAreAllAbel is on a mission to give back to the kids from his hometown in South Texas and show them what being a Ninja really means! https://t.co/Mj3W27YLgB

Abel Gonzalez was up next and finished the course in 1: 36 to set the pace for his fellow ninjas moving forward. Ethan Swanson was able to best Gonzalez’s time with a run of 1: 04 and celebrated with a backflip on the top of the Warped Wall.

Jamie Rahn revealed he lost part of his thumb during an accident with a circular saw before he took to the course. Captain NBC didn’t let his injury stop him from getting to the top of the Warped Wall and hit the buzzer.

Nick Hanson’s homemade course in Alaska was destroyed by a storm this year and he was unable to train the way he usually does. He looked winded by the fifth obstacle but made it through and became the first person to make it up the Mega Wall to win $10,000.

Ninja Warrior @ninjawarrior

.@KingdomNinja_ proves YET AGAIN he is a force to be reckoned with on the Ninja course! ⚡️ https://t.co/oWy4YlJQka

Jesse “Flex” Labreck and Daniel Gil were arguably the two most recognizable ninjas to compete this week. Labreck set a new record with her fourth qualifying finish. Gil was the final runner of the night and capped things off by hitting the buzzer.

Jake Murray set the fastest time of the night to put himself on the Power Tower with Swanson. The two speed demons and close friends raced up the tower, but it was Murray who hit the buzzer to keep his teammates in the competition. Here is a list of the competitors who advanced to the next round: