Ring Swing

Not to be confused with the Wing Swing.

The Ring Swing is an obstacle, firstly introduced as the second obstacle on American Ninja Warrior 8 in Oklahoma City.

Competitors would have to grab a ring, swing it to a post halfway across the water, and hook it onto the post. Then, they must make a transition to the second ring, hop it over the post, and swing to the landing platform. The majority of competitors got through it, though some had to swing twice.

A small number of competitors failed it in qualifying, including Brittany Hanks. During Oklahoma City finals, the second ring's chain was modified, so it would only swing halfway to the landing platform, making the dismount a tougher element of the obstacle. Only Christopher Moore failed this obstacle in the city finals.

Other Season Appearances[]

American Ninja Warrior 9[]

ANW9 Ring Swing — American Ninja Warrior 9's Ring Swing in Denver

The Ring Swing returned on American Ninja Warrior 9, as the second obstacle in Denver. However, the first ring was not hooked, and the gap between the starting platform to the obstacle and the distance to the landing platform were made longer, requiring competitors to swing farther.

The obstacle took out more competitors than during its appearance in Oklahoma City course on the previous season, as 30 competitors failed on the obstacle during Denver qualifiers, including Wendy Bradley, Candace Granberg, and Christian Okruhlik. During Denver finals, 2 competitors failed on the obstacle: Ben Burkhalter and Tanya O'Donohue.

American Ninja Warrior 11[]

ANW11 Ring Swing — American Ninja Warrior 11's Ring Swing in Cincinnati

On American Ninja Warrior 11, the Ring Swing appeared as the second obstacle in Cincinnati.

This time, the obstacle remained destructive, as a total of 26 competitors fell on the obstacle, including Jimmy Choi, Halei Jo Fuller, and Amy Pajcic.

Also during Cincinnati qualifiers, an injury on the Ring Swing occurred during Michelle Warnky's run. When swinging from the second ring, it hit the left side of her face hard, causing a cut around her left eye. Despite that, she still able to complete the obstacle and later the course altogether.

During Cincinnati finals, the hook's width for the second ring to unhook is made shorter, likely to prevent injuries from happening again. As a result, only Amanda O'Dell fell on the obstacle.

Giant Ring Swing[]

A variant of the Ring Swing, named as the Giant Ring Swing, appeared as the first obstacle in Stage Two on American Ninja Warrior 8, replacing the Rope Jungle from the past two American Ninja Warrior seasons. Just like its name implied, this obstacle is a supersized version of the Ring Swing, in which:

Competitors will start 30 feet (9.144 meters) on an elevated platform and swing 15 feet (4.572 meters) to hook the first ring.
Then, they must reach to the second ring, which has no chains and must be jumped to a third hook, which is 5 feet (1.524 meters) away.
Then, they must grab the third ring and unhook it to swing 15 feet and grab a laché bar.

There were three bars, arranged in a quarter-circle, that must be swung from to complete the obstacle, which served as a medium for the Down Up Salmon Ladder.

It was proven to be both a massive time waster and strength drainer, as every competitor who attempted the obstacle took at least 9 seconds to complete it (some of them even took more than 40 seconds to complete it). However, Michael Torres fell here as the only victim, when he failed the transition to the third ring.

During USA vs. The World 3, the Giant Ring Swing eliminated two members of Team Latin America (Karl Fow and David Saikin).

Other Season Appearances[]

American Ninja Warrior 9[]

ANW9 Giant Ring Swing — American Ninja Warrior 9's Giant Ring Swing in Stage Two

The Giant Ring Swing returned on American Ninja Warrior 9, once again as the first obstacle in Stage Two. The obstacle is the same as the previous season, but competitors must swing the third ring until they reach to the landing platform instead of grabbing a laché bar. Only Ryan Stratis and Michael Silenzi fell on this obstacle.

On American Ninja Warrior 10, the obstacle was replaced by the Epic Catch & Release.

Other Appearances[]

Ninja Warrior UK[]

NWUK3 Ring Swing — Ninja Warrior UK 3's Ring Swing

Nwuk5 ringswing — Ninja Warrior UK 5's Ring Swing

The Ring Swing appeared as the second obstacle during the semi-finals on Ninja Warrior UK 3 and Ninja Warrior UK 4. However, the obstacle was proven to be an extremely easy obstacle, as only one competitor failed on each season.

Then, on Ninja Warrior UK 5, the Ring Swing appeared as the fourth obstacle during the finals' Stage 1.

Ninja Warrior France[]

Nwfr2 ring swing — Ninja Warrior France 2's Ring Swing

Champion nwfr2 ring swing — Tim Champion demonstrating Ring Swing in Ninja Warrior France 2

Ring Swing (Le Balancier Infernal) appeared as the first obstacle of Stage 2 in Ninja Warrior France 2. No one failed this obstacle.

Australian Ninja Warrior[]

-34- Ring Swing — Australian Ninja Warrior's Ring Swing

Ringstocargonet — Australian Ninja Warrior 1's Rings to Cargo Net

Ringstocargo2 — Australian Ninja Warrior 1''s Rings to Cargo Net (with focus on the second ring and cargo net)

On Australian Ninja Warrior, the Ring Swing appeared as the eighth obstacle in Stage One. On this version, the first ring dangled over the water instead of being set over the starting platform, and the second half of the obstacle was made the same as the second part of Giant Ring Swing.

Beforehand, a variant called Rings to Cargo Net appeared as the fourth obstacle of Heat 5. The contestant must jump to grab the first ring, then build up enough momentum to reach the second. There they must swing to a cargo net and crawl beneath to safety.

Ninja Warrior Germany[]

NWG 2-Semi-finals-Obstacle-Ring Swing — Ninja Warrior Germany 2's Ring Swing (Ring-Schaukel)

Nwgr3 ring swing — Ninja Warrior Germany 3's Ring Swing

In Ninja Warrior Germany, the Ring Swing (locally known, and literally translated as Ring-Schaukel) first appeared in Ninja Warrior Germany 2 and Ninja Warrior Germany 3, serving as the second obstacle of the Semi-finals of said season. It had a similar configuration to the original version used in American Ninja Warrior 8, except with the starting blocks being replaced by a trampoline as a medium to reach the first ring.

Ninja Warrior Poland[]

NWP2 Ring Swing — Ninja Warrior Poland 2's Ring Swing

On Ninja Warrior Poland 2, the Ring Swing, locally called Rozhuśtane Pierścienie (literally Swinging Rings) appeared as the second obstacle in Stage One. The obstacle turned out to be very easy as only one competitor failed on it.

Ninja Israel[]

NWI Ring Swing — Ninja Israel's Ring Swing

On Ninja Warrior Israel, the Ring Swing, locally called זינוק הטבעות (literally The Leap of the Rings) appeared as the second obstacle in the Semifinals. Due to the unfamiliarity to the obstacle, just like American Ninja Warrior, the obstacle was extremely brutal, as it eliminated 49 out of 80 competitors who attempted it.

NWI3 Ring Swing — Ninja Israel 3's Ring Swing

Then, on Ninja Warrior Israel 3, the Ring Swing appeared as the second obstacle in Finals' Stage Two. However, the obstacle only served as the energy waster and time waster, as no competitor failed on it.

NWI4 Ring Swing — Ninja Israel 4's Ring Swing

Later, on Ninja Warrior Israel 4, the Ring Swing appeared as the fifth obstacle in Semifinal 1, Semifinal 5 and Repechage Semifinal. The obstacle has several modifications, in which the first post was rotated 90 degrees compared to the previous season, and there was a rope as a medium to reach the first ring. An interesting failure happened in Semifinal 1 with Gil Marantz's run; he accidentally kicked the second ring off the hook, which meant that he had to swing with the first ring and jump to the second ring while it was moving. He tried it but failed to catch the ring and fell into the water, resulting in him being the only competitor that season to fail this obstacle.

Team Ninja Warrior Germany[]

Tnwgr1 ring swing — Team Ninja Warrior Germany 1's Ring Swing

In Team Ninja Warrior Germany 1, Ring Swing appeared as the second obstacle of Episode 6 Relay.

Tnwgr2 ring swing — Team Ninja Warrior Germany 2's Ring Swing

In Team Ninja Warrior Germany 2, Ring Swing returned as the second obstacle of Seeding and Relay in Episode 1, with a similar configuration to the previous season.

Competitors' Success Rate[]

All results based on the NBC/Polsat/Keshet 12 broadcast and external information found.

American Ninja Warrior[]

Giant Ring Swing
ANW	Clears	Attempts	Percentage
ANW8	16	17	94.12%
ANW9	39	41	95.12%
USA vs. The World 3	7	9	77.77%
USA vs. The World 4	8	8	100%
Total	70	75	93.33%

Ninja Warrior Poland[]

Ring Swing
NWP	Clears	Attempts	Percentage
NWP2	23	24	95.83%
Total	23	24	95.83%

Ninja Israel[]

Ring Swing
NWI	Clears	Attempts	Percentage
NWI1 (Semifinal 1)	7	19	36.84%
NWI1 (Semifinal 2)	10	21	47.62%
NWI1 (Semifinal 3)	6	20	30%
NWI1 (Semifinal 4)	8	20	40%
NWI3 (Final)	11	11	100%
NWI4 (Semifinal 1)	3	4	75%
NWI4 (Semifinal 5)	4	4	100%
NWI4 (Repechage Semifinal)	2	2	100%
Total	51	101	50.5%

Trivia[]

The second part of the Giant Ring Swing (the usage of the ring with no chains and the cradle) became the inspiration for the Sky Hooks, which would be firstly used as the fourth obstacle on American Ninja Warrior 9 in San Antonio. The Sky Hooks itself was one of the obstacles that won the first edition of American Ninja Warrior: Obstacle Design Challenge.