The Despicaballs is an obstacle, firstly introduced as part of the Split Decision in the fourth and fifth episodes of qualifiers on American Ninja Warrior 14. It was paired with the Log Runner and Broken Bridge respectively as part of the Split Decision.
It consists of four spheres attached to the V-shaped boards that will pivot when the competitors stepped on them, each board is supported with a support bar at the bottom, and the spheres will spin around an axis. Competitors must run across the obstacle to reach the landing platform.
The concept of this obstacle is similar to the Tuning Forks and Spinning Bridge, where competitors must run across a series of items. But compared to both obstacles, the Despicaballs have a smaller V-shaped board in a way that competitors can only run across the spheres in a similar manner to the Spinning Bridge. In addition, the spheres are arranged in a zig-zag formation compared to the Spinning Bridge which has their spheres arranged in a straight line.
Several competitors chose to attempt this obstacle during the fourth episode of qualifiers, including Christian Youst, Zack Eichenstein, and Barclay Stockett. Six competitors failed, including Jess Wombles, Michael Eckert, and most shockingly, Jonathan Godbout. During the fifth episode of qualifiers, it took out another six competitors, including Megan Johnson and Deren Perez.
Other Appearances[]
Ninja Warrior France[]
In Ninja Warrior France 8, the Despicaballs, locally called Le Grand Dribble (literally The Great Dribbling), appeared as the fourth obstacle of the First Stage of the Finals. In its first appearance outside of American Ninja Warrior, the obstacle differed in some aspects, compared to the original version used in American Ninja Warrior 14:
- To reflect the fact that the obstacle is not promoting anything, all four spheres were painted red and silver-grey instead. So each sphere resembled a basketball, hence the name of the obstacle.
- The second, third and the fourth spheres were arranged roughly perpendicular to the first sphere.
Similar to the obstacle used in Ninja Warrior Germany, it only eliminated two competitors and many other ninjas tripped coming off the obstacle. In Ninja Warrior France: Clash of Nations, it was replaced by the Giant Cubes.
Ninja Warrior Germany[]
In Ninja Warrior Germany 8, the Despicaballs, locally called Rotierende Bรคlle (literally Rotating Balls), appeared as the fourth obstacle in the First Stage. The colour scheme and design of the balls were similar to the Ninja Warrior France 8 version, with the only difference being the addition of a huge gap between the final ball and the landing platform. The leap to the platform caused a lot of ninjas to stumble and dig into it, wasting time and strength. Despite a lot of ninjas tripping whilst running across the obstacle, it only eliminated two competitors: Thorben Hinkel, and (more shockingly) the Super Salmon Ladder Winner of the Preliminary Round 2, Tim Wolf.
Competitors' Success Rate[]
- All results based on the RTL broadcast and external information found.
Ninja Warrior Germany[]
NWG | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
NWG8 | 18 | 20 | 90% |
Total | 18 | 20 | 90% |
Trivia[]
- The obstacle's name is a portmanteau of the words "despicable" (as in Despicable Me, the franchise that the movie is part of) and "balls".
- The spheres are designed after the four prominent Minion characters in the movie: Otto, Bob, Stuart, and Kevin.
- Said Minions were also seen "attempting" the obstacle in a short animation scene before a commercial break.
- The Despicaballs was the fourth obstacle in American Ninja Warrior history to be served to promote an upcoming movie. In this case, Minions: The Rise of Gru, which was released in the U.S. on July 1st, 2022. The previous three obstacles to do so were:
- the Ninjago Roll, appeared during American Ninja Warrior 9's Denver finals, which was used to promote The Lego Ninjago Movie,
- the Fallout, appeared during American Ninja Warrior 10's Dallas finals, which was used to promote Mission: Impossible - Fallout, and
- the Angry Birds, appeared during American Ninja Warrior 11's Baltimore finals, which was used to promote The Angry Birds Movie 2.
- The Despicaballs is also the first such obstacle to debut in a qualifying round, rather than a semifinals round, before the Mutant Mayhem in American Ninja Warrior 15.