Circle Slider (サークルスライダー) was a First Stage obstacle in SASUKE 17. The obstacle consisted of a springboard that the competitors must jump to latch onto a ring and slide the ring down an 8 metres path. The ring was on a track that the competitors must ride down, much like Gliding Ring in the future.
It was proven to be a very hard obstacle, as it took out many competitors, including the first Grand Champion, Akiyama Kazuhiko. However, following Nagano Makoto's Kanzenseiha in the tournament, it was replaced by Bungee Bridge in SASUKE 18 as part of the course's renewal.
Washimi Yūji attempting Circle Slider in SASUKE 17
Brian Orosco attempting modified Circle Slider
in SASUKE 25
Like other obstacles in the tournament, it was brought out of retirement in SASUKE 25, where the run-up was made longer, and the ring was placed higher and farther from the springboard compared to its original version. Also, the track is visibly more slanted and shorter, making the ring slide faster in both speed and time consumed. This obstacle proved to be more difficult for competitors with a lower clear rate and it eliminated top competitors such as Matachi Ryo, Tajima Naoya, Hioki Masashi, and most notably, Nagano Makoto. In all the cases, they manage to only touch or completely miss the ring from the jump, a proof that the distance's modification was a real killer in this version. However, it again only remained for one tournament, as it was replaced by the Giant Swing in the following tournament.
Other Appearances[]
American Ninja Warrior[]
American Ninja Warrior 2's Circle Slider
The Circle Slider appeared on American Ninja Warrior 2, as the eighth obstacle during semifinal (after the Salmon Ladder).
With the exception of Brian Orosco, every competitor who reached the obstacle could complete it.
SASUKE Vietnam[]
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SASUKE Vietnam 5's Circle Slider
The Circle Slider, literally translated Trượt Vòng, appeared as the fifth obstacle in Stage 1A on SASUKE Vietnam 1, SASUKE Vietnam 3 and SASUKE Vietnam 4, Stage 1B on SASUKE Vietnam 2, and Stage 2 on SASUKE Vietnam 5, which was very similar to the one used in SASUKE 17, except the obstacle being combined with the Rope Ladder at the end of the track.
The transition to the Rope Ladder was very dangerous if competitors grab the Rope Ladder awkwardly. This happened to An Xuân Đoàn in SASUKE Vietnam 2, as he slipped at the Rope Ladder after the successful transition from the Circle Slider, which resulted his left shoulder getting injured. Despite that, he still cleared the Stage 1B course with 1:21.21 seconds and continued his run in Stage Two until he withdrew at the Salmon Ladder.
Starting from SASUKE Vietnam 4, an issue appeared with a lot of competitors. When they were sliding the ring, by unknown reason, the ring didn't slide smoothly and suddenly got slower or even stopped, forcing them to swing the ring at the end of the track, which was hard to gain momentum in order to reach the Rope Ladder (somewhat similar to what Nagano Makoto experienced on the Gliding Ring in SASUKE 21), instead of using the ring's momentum to grab the net like usual.
A mount of competitors luckily still could reach the net with their foot and continue the course, but in opposite, this issue caused a mount of competitors failed to reach or grip the Rope Ladder successfully.
Competitors' Success Rate[]
- All result based on the TBS/G4 broadcast and external information found.
SASUKE[]
| SASUKE | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | 41 | 59 | 69.49% |
| 25 | 11 | 16 | 68.75% |
| Total | 52 | 75 | 69.33% |
American Ninja Warrior[]
| ANW | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| ANW2 | 10 | 11 | 90.91% |
| Total | 10 | 11 | 90.91% |
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