Ninja Warrior France 5 is the fifth season of Ninja Warrior format in France, and the first season after the total victories of Jean Tezenas du Montcel and Nicolas Cerquant on the previous season. The show was taped at Vieux Port de Cannes in Cannes and premiered on January 2, 2021 on TF1. Denis Brogniart, Christophe Beaugrand and Iris Mittenaere returned as hosts and commentators this season, while Shane Griffin returned as the tester of the course. This season also marked the return of the show after missing out 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic.
The Qualifications
There were a total of 4 qualification rounds, each course was made up of six obstacles: with the fifth obstacle was added new compared to Ninja Warrior France 4. It was a version of the Power Tower named La Tour d'Acier (Steel Tower), 12 meters high. Compared to its past appearances on other shows such as American Ninja Warrior, instead of being used as a side-by-side obstacle race, only one competitor can attempt the obstacle per run.
Also, returning from Ninja Warrior France 4, competitors must indicate their choice between Route A or Route B, with two obstacles each to tackle, a very similar concept to the Crossroads in VIKING .
Compared to previous seasons, competitors now have to complete the first four obstacles within a certain time limit: 2 minutes 30 seconds for men, and 3 minutes for women. However, in Qualification 4, it was reduced to 2 minutes 15 seconds for men, and 2 minutes 30 seconds for women.
The Mega Wall is making a comeback, but it works different this time and now very similar to American Ninja Warrior 11:
- Competitors were given 3 attempts to complete either the regular Warped Wall or Mega Wall.
- If they decided to attempt the Mega Wall and failed to complete it after 3 attempts, they couldn't return to the regular Warped Wall this time.
- The cash prizes for completing the Mega Wall would decrease as competitors used up more of the attempts. The cash prizes were listed as followed:
- Completion on the first attempt: €5,000.
- Completion on the second attempt: €2,500.
- Completion on the third and final attempt: €1,000.
Fifty competitors would attempt each qualification round. At the end of each of the four qualifications, the top 12 would advance to the semifinals. However, competitors who completed the Mega Wall on their first attempt would be not counted to the leaderboard as they gain an automatic pass to the finals. But, if they cleared the Mega Wall on their second or third attempt, their run would still be counted into the leaderboard.
Also, with the announcement of its own Obstacle Design Challenge from the previous season, in which fans created obstacles and the best would be modified and used in the course. This year's winner was the Inclined Cylinder (Le Cylindre Incliné), created by Dorian, an 18-year-old engineer student from Savoy.
Qualification 1
Obstacles
Timed
① Shrinking Steps (Les Cinq Marches)
② Rolling Log (Le Rouleau Compresseur)
③ Curved Body Prop (Le Piège de Cristal) (A) or Barrel Roll (Le Double Barillet) (B)
④ Ferris Wheel (Les Disques J'ai Eu) (A) or Giant Cubes (Les Cubes de Cristal) (B)
Time Limit: 150 seconds (180 seconds for female competitors)
Untimed
⑤ Power Tower (La Tour d'Acier)
⑥ Warped Wall / Mega Wall (Le Mur Classique / Le Méga Mur)
Results
| Place | Name | Profile | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | Maxime Ben-Medjani | Barman | Clear (3:34) | Completed the Mega Wall on his first attempt and won the €5,000 cash prize. |
| - | Soen Brière-Robert | Student | Clear (4:44) | Completed the Mega Wall on his first attempt and won the €5,000 cash prize. |
| 1st | Clément Gravier | Apprentice Decolleteur | Clear (3:44.9) | |
| 2nd | Antoine Gravier | Regulation | Clear (4:15.0) | |
| 3rd | Phil Güd | Actor / Sports Coach | Clear (4:54.4) | |
| 4th | Thomas Dudoué | Cascadeur | Clear (5:19.9) | |
| 5th | Valentin Decarnin | Student | 6. Warped Wall (4:20.4) | Failed after 3 attempts at the Mega Wall. |
| 6th | Matthias Noirel | Climbing Teacher | 6. Warped Wall (4:48.0) | Failed after 3 attempts at the Mega Wall. |
| 7th | Emilien Marion | Student | 5. Power Tower (3:35.0) | Early cut. |
| 8th | Ianis Drardja | Student | 5. Power Tower (3:37.1) | Digest. |
| 9th | Florian Beauventre | Plumber | 5. Power Tower (4:04.5) | Digest. |
| 10th | Jérémy Motts | Adventure Room Manager | 5. Power Tower (4:05.1) | Early cut. |
| 11th | Erwann Bodolec | Content Creator / Commercial | 4. Giant Cubes (1:32.8) | Early cut. |
| 12th | Axel Bernardeau | Firefighter Trainer | 4. Giant Cubes (1:35.4) | Early cut. |
Qualification 2
Obstacles
Timed
① Shrinking Steps (Les Cinq Marches)
② Lunatic Ledges (Le Double Pendule)
③ The Hinge (Le Volte-Face) (A) or Grim Sweeper (Les Trois Griffes) (B)
④ Dangerous Curves (Les Tapis Volants) (A) or Doorknob Arch (La Grande Roue) (B)
Time Limit: 150 seconds (180 seconds for female competitors)
Untimed
⑤ Power Tower (La Tour d'Acier)
⑥ Warped Wall / Mega Wall (Le Mur Classique / Le Méga Mur)
Results
| Place | Name | Profile | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Jonathan Bonnet | Medical Intern | Clear (3:03.1) | |
| 2nd | Dimitri Capitaine | Sports Teacher | Clear (3:42.3) | Digest. |
| 3rd | Alexandre Ewig | Landscape-Climber | Clear (4:00.2) | |
| 4th | Aurélien Roy | Content Creator | Clear (4:40.9) | |
| 5th | Solan Dejouy | Professional Freerider | Clear (4:51.2) | Completed the Mega Wall on his second attempt and won the €2,500 cash prize. |
| 6th | Acrobate94 | Content Creator | Clear (5:15.5) | |
| 7th | Hieu Nguyen | Aerospace Engineer | Clear (6:46.1) | Digest. |
| 8th | Maurane Jelic | Student | Clear (7:57.8) | Only women hit the Qualification buzzer this season. |
| 9th | Nicolas Rouyé | Mannequin | Clear (7:59.3) | |
| 10th | Benjamin Gaudiche | Sports Coach | 5. Power Tower (2:35.5) | |
| 11th | Aloïs Jarnier | Student | 5. Power Tower (2:46.6) | Early cut. |
| 12th | Hervé Demule | Aeronautic Engineer | 5. Power Tower (4:12.0) | Early cut. |
Qualification 3
Obstacles
Timed
① Shrinking Steps (Les Cinq Marches)
② Spinning Bowties (Les Nœud Papillon)
③ Barrel Roll (Le Double Barillet) (A) or Grim Sweeper (Les Trois Griffes) (B)
④ Dangerous Curves (Les Tapis Volants) (A) or Giant Cubes (Les Cubes de Cristal) (B)
Time Limit: 150 seconds (180 seconds for female competitors)
Untimed
⑤ Power Tower (La Tour d'Acier)
⑥ Warped Wall / Mega Wall (Le Mur Classique / Le Méga Mur)
Results
| Place | Name | Profile | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Jean Tezenas du Montcel | Engineer | Clear (1:51.6) | |
| 2nd | Charles Poujade | Content Creator / Athlete | Clear (2:17.4) | |
| 3rd | Clément Dumais | Content Creator | Clear (2:33.8) | |
| 4th | Josselin Provost | Sports Trainer | Clear (2:38.9) | Digest. |
| 5th | Andrii Bulavka | IT Consultant | Clear (2:50.1) | Digest. |
| 6th | Thomas Hubener | Artist-Acrobat | Clear (2:51.3) | |
| 7th | Farid | Gendarme | Clear (3:03.5) | Digest. |
| 8th | Florian Januel | Physiotherapist | Clear (3:12.9) | |
| 9th | Tony Fuhs | Inddusstrial Designer | Clear (3:17.0) | Digest. |
| 10th | Maelig Abjean | Clear (3:47.9) | Digest. | |
| 11th | Antonin Deschamps | Sports Coach | Clear (3:52.4) | Digest. |
| 12th | Stéphane Crichton | Accountant | 6. Warped Wall (3:39.2) | Failed after 3 attempts at the Mega Wall. |
Qualification 4
Obstacles
Timed
① Shrinking Steps (Les Cinq Marches)
② Lunatic Ledges (Le Double Pendule)
③ Curved Body Prop (Le Piège de Cristal) (A) or Walk the Plank (La Planche à Bascule) (B)
④ Ferris Wheel (Les Disques J'ai Eu) (A) or ~Inclined Cylinder (Le Cylindre Incliné) (B)
Time Limit: 135 seconds (150 seconds for female competitors)
Untimed
⑤ Power Tower (La Tour d'Acier)
⑥ Warped Wall / Mega Wall (Le Mur Classique / Le Méga Mur)
~ - Fan-created Obstacle (Obstacle Design Challenge Winner)
Results
| Place | Name | Profile | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | Benyamine Elouafi | Social-Educational Animator | Clear (3:58) | Completed the Mega Wall on his first attempt and won the €5,000 cash prize. |
| 1st | Raphaël Ducrot | Firefighter | Clear (3:12.0) | |
| 2nd | Nicolas Cerquant | Watersports Instructor | Clear (3:37.9) | |
| 3rd | Bertrand | Lifeguard | 5. Power Tower (3:01.2) | |
| 4th | Killian Touel | Content Creator | 5. Power Tower (3:11.3) | Digest. |
| 5th | Brice Bak | Aeronautic Engineer | 5. Power Tower (2:54.6) | Technically had to ranked 3rd but he is listed as ranking 5th. |
| 6th | Brice Bedier | Firefighter | 4. Ferris Wheel (1:07.1) | |
| 7th | Marika Briand | Payroll Assistant | 4. Ferris Wheel (1:13.1) | Digest. |
| 8th | Antoine Reydellet | Medical Intern | 4. Ferris Wheel (1:14.5) | |
| 9th | Bastien Gautier | Designer | 4. Ferris Wheel (1:30.8) | Timed out. |
| 10th | David Maury | Artisan | 4. Ferris Wheel (1:32.4) | |
| 11th | Laura Couthures | Nurse | 4. Ferris Wheel (2:06.5) | Timed out. |
| 12th | Louis Queraux | Physiotherapist / Parkour Coach | 3. Walk the Plank (0:27.2) | Has competed in Ninja Warrior Spain 2. |
The Semifinals
There were a total of 4 semifinals, with each semifinal took place right after the Qualification it represents. The functioning was the same with Ninja Warrior France 4, with 12 semifinalists would be divided into 6 matches, the fastest qualifying will face the 12th qualifying, the 2nd will face the 11th, the 3rd the 10th, etc. 2 competitors in each match would race on the same course, one at time, and the one did better would earn a spot to the Final, while the other would be eliminated.
Among 6 competitors that won in each Semifinal, the one with the best performance would earn a "joker", allowing him/her a chance to start an obstacle again in the Final if he/she fails; however, there was no more the € 5,000 cash prize.
Obstacles
① Floating Steps (Le Grand Escalier)
② Swinging Frames (Les Cadres à Coulisses)
③ Spinning Bridge (Le Boulier)
④ Spring Forward (Les Tiges à Ressorts)
⑤ Chimney Sweep (La Cheminée de L'Extrême)
Results
Semifinal 1
| Match | Name | Result | Note | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clément Gravier | Clear (1:07.3) | Clément Gravier | |
| Axel Bernardeau | 4. Spring Forward | |||
| 2 | Antoine Gravier | Clear (1:02.0) | Antoine Gravier | |
| Erwann Bodolec | 3. Spinning Bridge | Disqualified for touching the wires. | ||
| 3 | Phil Güd | 1. Shrinking Steps | Jérémy Motts | |
| Jérémy Motts | 4. Spring Forward (0:47.8) | |||
| 4 | Thomas Dudoué | Clear (0:53.9) | Thomas Dudoué | |
| Florian Beauventre | Clear (1:16) | |||
| 5 | Matthias Noirel | Clear (1:14.1) | Matthias Noirel | |
| Emilien Marion | Clear (1:16) | |||
| 6 | Valentin Decarnin | Clear (1:19.4) | Valentin Decarnin | |
| Ianis Drardja | Clear | His time wasn't shown during broadcast. | ||
| Earned the Joker: Thomas Dudoué | ||||
Semifinal 2
| Match | Name | Result | Note | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jonathan Bonnet | Clear (1:58.1) | Jonathan Bonnet | |
| Hervé Demule | 4. Spring Forward | |||
| 2 | Alexandre Ewig | 4. Spring Forward | Benjamin Gaudiche | |
| Benjamin Gaudiche | Clear (2:31.9) | |||
| 3 | Dimitri Capitaine | 5. Chimney Sweep (1:51.0) | Dimitri Capitaine | |
| Aloïs Jarnier | 4. Spring Forward | |||
| 4 | Aurélien Roy | Clear (1:17.8) | Aurélien Roy | |
| Nicolas Rouyé | 5. Chimney Sweep | |||
| 5 | Solan Dejouy | Clear (2:13) | Solan Dejouy | |
| Maurane Jelic | Clear (4:01) | Later she was received a wildcard to the Final. | ||
| 6 | Acrobate94 | 5. Chimney Sweep (2:12.9) | Acrobate94 | |
| Hieu Nguyen | 4. Spring Forward | |||
| Earned the Joker: Aurélien Roy | ||||
Semifinal 3
| Match | Name | Result | Note | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jean Tezenas du Montcel | Clear (1:05.8) | Jean Tezenas du Montcel | |
| Stéphane Crichton | 4. Spring Forward | |||
| 2 | Charles Poujade | Clear (0:56.0) | Charles Poujade | |
| Antonin Deschamps | 3. Spinning Bridge | |||
| 3 | Clément Dumais | Clear (1:19.1) | Clément Dumais | |
| Maelig Abjean | Clear (1:59) | |||
| 4 | Andrii Bulavka | Clear (1:52.6) | Andrii Bulavka | |
| Florian Januel | 1. Shrinking Steps | |||
| 5 | Josselin Provost | 5. Chimney Sweep | Tony Fuhs | |
| Tony Fuhs | Clear (1:39.7) | |||
| 6 | Thomas Hubener | Clear (1:12.3) | Thomas Hubener | |
| Farid | 4. Spring Forward | |||
| Earned the Joker: Charles Poujade | ||||
Semifinal 4
| Match | Name | Result | Note | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Raphaël Ducrot | Clear (1:05) | Louis Queraux | |
| Louis Queraux | Clear (1:02.2) | |||
| 2 | Nicolas Cerquant | Clear (2:14.4) | Nicolas Cerquant | |
| Laura Couthures | 2. Swinging Frames | |||
| 3 | Bertrand | Clear (1:52.2) | Bertrand | |
| David Maury | Clear (2:24) | |||
| 4 | Killian Touel | 4. Spring Forward | Failed the transition to the 2nd bar. | Bastien Gautier |
| Bastien Gautier | 4. Spring Forward (0:57.0) | Failed the transition to the 3rd bar. | ||
| 5 | Brice Bak | Clear (1:57.0) | Brice Bak | |
| Antoine Reydellet | 4. Spring Forward | |||
| 6 | Brice Bedier | 4. Spring Forward (0:51.0) | Brice Bedier | |
| Marika Briand | 1. Shrinking Steps | |||
| Earned the Joker: Louis Queraux | ||||
The Finals
The Finals consisted of 24 competitors advanced from the Semifinals, 3 competitors automatically advanced to the Finals by completing the Mega Wall in the first attempt during the Qualifications, and similar to Season 3, a wildcard was given to Maurane Jelic - who was the best women competitor during the Semifinals. They would battle it out to become the next winner of Ninja Warrior France and earn €100,000 cash prize. If no one could complete the course, the furthest fastest one would be awarded €20,000 cash prize.
Also, similar to the previous season, the Final featured a "Joker", which gave competitors who got it a chance to redo the obstacle they had just failed during Stage 1 and timed part of Stage 2. Compared to the Safety Pass, competitors didn't need to redo the whole stage, but they only had a little time to rest before attempting the obstacle again, the timer would continue to count from the time competitors failed before, and no other competitors would run the course during the rest.
Stage 1
Obstacles
① Hazard Cones (Le Piège de Diamants)
② Rolling Steel (Les Cadres à Coulisses)
③ Double Twister (Le Double Twister)
④ The Clacker (Les Clackers)
⑤ Warped Wall (La Rampe de Lancement)
⑥ Doorknob Drop (Les Équerres)
⑦ Wall Flip (La Tour de Plomb)
Time Limit: 250 seconds (280 seconds for female competitors)
Results
| Name | Semifinal | Semifinal Placing | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maxime Ben-Medjani | Mega Wall First Attempt Clear | 4. The Clacker | ||
| Clément Gravier | 1 | 3rd | Clear (0:29 left) | |
| Antoine Gravier | 1 | 2nd | 3. Double Twister | Disqualified for touching two sets of handles at the same time. |
| Aurélien Roy | 2 | 1st | 4. The Clacker | Since he already earned the Joker during Semifinal 2, he would have a second attempt at this obstacle. Had 2:05 left before failing. |
| 4. The Clacker | Second attempt. | |||
| Matthias Noirel | 1 | 4th | Clear (0:00 left) | |
| Benyamine Elouafi | Mega Wall First Attempt Clear | 4. The Clacker | Digest. | |
| Dimitri Capitaine | 2 | 5th | 4. The Clacker | Digest. |
| Solan Dejouy | 2 | 3rd | 4. The Clacker | Early cut. |
| Acrobate94 | 2 | 6th | 4. The Clacker | Early cut. |
| Maurane Jelic | Best Women Wildcard | 6. Doorknob Drop | ||
| Jean Tezenas du Montcel | 3 | 2nd | Clear (0:42 left) | |
| Thomas Hubener | 3 | 3rd | 4. The Clacker | Disqualified for not rotating a clacker. |
| Valentin Decarnin | 1 | 5th | 7. Wall Flip Tower | Timed out. Third floor. |
| Thomas Dudoué | 1 | 1st | 3. Double Twister | Failed to dismount. Since he already earned the Joker during Semifinal 1, he would have a second attempt at this obstacle. Had 3:28 left before failing. |
| 6. Doorknob Drop | Second attempt. | |||
| Soen Brière-Robert | Mega Wall First Attempt Clear | 6. Doorknob Drop | Digest. | |
| Louis Queraux | 4 | 1st | 6. Doorknob Drop | All cut. Revealed during the second attempt. Since he already earned the Joker during Semifinal 4, he would have a second attempt at this obstacle. |
| 6. Doorknob Drop | Digest. Second attempt. | |||
| Nicolas Cerquant | 4 | 4th | 6. Doorknob Drop | |
| Jonathan Bonnet | 2 | 2nd | Clear (0:14 left) | |
| Charles Poujade | 3 | 1st | Clear (0:23 left) | |
| Bastien Gautier | 4 | 5th | 4. The Clacker | |
| Clément Dumais | 3 | 4th | 7. Wall Flip Tower | Timed out. Third floor. |
| Jérémy Motts | 1 | 6th | Unknown | All cut. |
| Benjamin Gaudiche | 2 | 4th | Unknown | All cut. |
| Tony Fuhs | 3 | 5th | Unknown | All cut. |
| Andrii Bulavka | 3 | 6th | Unknown | All cut. |
| Bertrand | 4 | 2nd | Unknown | All cut. |
| Brice Bak | 4 | 3rd | Unknown | All cut. |
| Brice Bedier | 4 | 6th | Unknown | All cut. |
Stage 2
Obstacles
Timed
① Roulette Row (Les Volants)
② Devil Steps (L'Everest)
③ Salmon Ladder (L'Échelle d'Hercule)
④ Flying Shelf Grab (Les Hauts Plateaux)
⑤ Leaps of Faith (Les Volets Aériens)
⑥ Chimney Sweep (La Cheminée de L'Extrême)
Time Limit: 210 seconds
Untimed
⑦ Ultimate Cliffhanger (La Muraille des Titans)
⑧ Slingshot (Les Sauts à L' Élastique)
⑨ Hang Climb (Le Plafond de Verre)
⑩ Snap Back (La Souricière)
Results
| Name | Semifinal | Semifinal Placing | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matthias Noirel | 1 | 4th | 8. Slingshot | Cleared the timed part with 1:07 left. |
| Clément Gravier | 1 | 3rd | 8. Slingshot | Cleared the timed part with 0:07 left. |
| Jonathan Bonnet | 2 | 2nd | 7. Ultimate Cliffhanger | First hanging board. His run during the timed part was digested but he was shown to clear with less than 5 seconds left. |
| Charles Poujade | 3 | 1st | 7. Ultimate Cliffhanger | First hanging board. Cleared the timed part with 0:04 left. |
| Jean Tezenas du Montcel | 3 | 2nd | Clear | Cleared the timed part with 0:15 left. |
Final Stage (Tour des Héros)
Obstacles
① Rope Climb (23 meters)
Time Limit: 32 seconds
Results
| Name | Semifinal | Semifinal Placing | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jean Tezenas du Montcel | 3 | 2nd | 1. Rope Climb (23m) | Missed the button for only a few centimeters away. As a side note, the time limit corresponds with the time taken for Jean to achieve total victory last season. |
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