Prism See-Saw (プリズムシーソー), called Prism Tilt in English broadcasts, was an obstacle introduced in SASUKE 13's First Stage as the first obstacle, replacing the Yamagoe from the previous tournament.
Competitors needed to jump over a small pit onto a large triangle which was supported by an axis in its center. The addition of weight on one side of the triangle would tilt it into the water, so it needed to be crossed quickly. This obstacle required both speed and balance. However, despite eliminating a fair number of competitors, it was replaced in the following tournament with Ensuitobi.
In an interview, Masato Inui, the current producer of SASUKE, mentioned that the obstacle has a similar function to its predecessor, Yamagoe, stating that this obstacle is the upgraded version. However, it also takes time to eliminate competitors due to its slow tilting. As a result, there may be times when the obstacle's pace is off, which reduces the likelihood that competitors will be able to end their runs dynamically especially as the first obstacle, which became one of the reasons why it was removed after one tournament.
The idea of traversing a see-saw triangle was applied in Sankaku Bashi, which used in KUNOICHI 2006 Autumn as the second obstacle of the First Stage, also called Prism Tilt during the international rebroadcasts.
American Ninja Warrior Appearances[]
Prism See-saw, called Prism Tilt, appeared in American Ninja Warrior 5 as the third obstacle in Baltimore. However, unlike in SASUKE, the landing platform was placed much lower relative to the prism. Also, for safety purposes, the beam holding the prism was covered with padding.
Other Appearances[]
On European SASUKE/Ninja Warrior formats, the Prism See-Saw would usually be modified to have two prisms instead of one, as well as having both prisms be wider than in SASUKE. This trend seemed to start with Ninja Warrior France.
Ninja Warrior France[]
In Ninja Warrior France 2, the Prism See-Saw, locally called Les Triangles à Bascule (literally Rocking Triangles) introduced as part of the Split Decision in Qualification 2, 3 and 4. The obstacle had one significant difference compared to the one used in SASUKE 13 and American Ninja Warrior 5 that the number of prisms were increased to two, which resulted in the obstacle requiring even more balance and speed.
Ninja Warrior Germany[]
In Ninja Warrior Germany 2 and Ninja Warrior Germany 3, the Prism See-Saw, locally called Dachwippen (literally Roof Tilts) appeared as the third obstacle in the Semi-finals, which was very similar to the one used in Ninja Warrior France 2 (since the obstacle consisting of two prisms). The obstacle was very brutal, as it eliminated 10 out of 50 competitors who attempted it.
Ninja Warrior Poland[]
In Ninja Warrior Poland 5, Prism See-Saw, locally called Ruchome Dachy (literally Moving Roofs) appeared as the third obstacle during finals' Stage One, which was very similar to the one used in Ninja Warrior France 2 (since the obstacle consisting of two prisms). Only two out of 14 competitors were eliminated on this obstacle.
Then, on Ninja Warrior Poland 9, the Prism See-Saw returned as the third obstacle in Heat 1, which similar configurations to the one used in Ninja Warrior Poland 5.
Competitors' Success Rate[]
- All results based on the TBS/RTL/Polsat broadcast and external information found.
SASUKE[]
SASUKE | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
13 | 73 | 99 | 73.74% |
Total | 73 | 99 | 73.74% |
Ninja Warrior Germany[]
NWG | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
NWG2 | 40 | 50 | 80% |
NWG3 | 49 | 54 | 90.74% |
Total | 89 | 104 | 85.57% |
Ninja Warrior Poland[]
NWP | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
NWP5 | 12 | 14 | 85.71% |
NWP9 (Heat 1) | 13 | 19 | 68.42% |
Total | 25 | 33 | 75.76% |
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