Taylor "Teej" Johnson is a seven-time competitor of American Ninja Warrior, first competing in American Ninja Warrior 11.
American Ninja Warrior 11[]
She first completed in Baltimore. Her qualifying run was digested, but it was shown that she failed the Dangerous Curves, and she didn't make it there fast enough for the top 5 women.
American Ninja Warrior 12[]
She returned to complete in American Ninja Warrior 12 in the first qualifier episode. Her run was once again digested, but it was shown that she failed the fifth obstacle, Slingshot, and moved after placing 2nd among the women.
Her run in the second Semifinals was also digested but it was shown that she failed Clockwork, ending her season.
Prior to the season being modified, Taylor was originally supposed to compete in Washington D.C. this season. It is also worth noting that the original qualifier tape date before the Covid modification would've took place on her 26th birthday, April 6.[1][2]
American Ninja Warrior 13[]
Taylor competed in ANW 13 in the fourth episode of qualifying. Once again, her run was digested, but she went out on the fourth obstacle, Air Surfer, as she was too aggressive with the board. Subsequently, she did not make the Women's Top 5.
American Ninja Warrior 14[]
Taylor returned for her fourth season in American Ninja Warrior 14. She competed in third qualifier, where her run was all cut and she was only shown on broadcast cheering on fellow training partner Addy Herman. It is known that she was one of many to fail the Log Runner, marking her first elimination on a balance obstacle.[3] Once again, she did not make it past the qualifying round.
American Ninja Warrior 15[]
Taylor returned for her fifth season, competing in the first qualifier. Her run was digested, but she failed Lasso Launch, after the rope slid off the hook while gathering momentum to transition. By being the slowest of the four women who made it there, she had to compete in the runoffs as seeded competitor against Avery Glantz. Not only did she beat Avery who quickly fell on Home Run, she managed to fully complete the course and hit her first buzzer which qualified her for the semi finals.
She then returned in the second semifinals episode where she raced against Casey Rothschild. Taylor got the lead early in the run so when Casey failed Hopscotch, she won the heat by getting to Slingshot even though she failed it, and she made history as the shortest woman to earn a spot in the National Finals, at just 4’11.
At the national finals, she had no problems on the first three obstacles, but she later failed on the Jumping Spider, ending her best season to date.
American Ninja Warrior: Women’s Championship 4[]
After a phenomenal season, she got the chance to compete in the fourth ever women’s championship. Taylor was the first runner of the championship where despite being 4’11 she got her revenge on the Jumping Spider and making it past the Vegas version of the Warped Wall on her first attempt becoming the shortest to conquer both of those obstacles. On Thread the Needle, she had a low grab on the cane and couldn’t make the jump into the ring falling into the water.
She still moved onto Stage Two in 8th place racing against the teen phenom, Taylor Greene. On the “Taylor-made” Stage Two race, she became the shortest women ever to attempt Stage Two and had the lead going into Jawbreakers. Due to her height, she got behind Taylor on Jawbreakers and couldn’t catch up before falling on the dismount of Epic Air Surfer and lost the heat to Taylor Greene eliminating her from the competition.
American Ninja Warrior 16[]
Taylor returned for her sixth season, competing in the fourth qualifier round. Her run was once again digested, but compared to last season she had a fast pace and made it to the fourth obstacle, Heavy Metal falling on the first jump. Due to her fast pace, she placed 2nd among the woman advancing to the semifinals, this time without the help of a Runoff race.
Taylor later competed in the first semifinal episode, racing against Emily Gardiner. The race was digested, but they both failed on Sideways. Since Taylor reached the obstacle first, she advanced to the national finals for the second season in a row.
Taylor's Stage One run was digested, but she once again failed on the Jumping Spider.
American Ninja Warrior 17[]
Taylor returned for her seventh season, competing in the third qualifier round. Her run was digested, but she fell early on the second obstacle, going out on the dismount of Lunatic Ledges. This marked her first time being eliminated in the qualifiers since ANW 14 and also marked her earliest exit to date.
American Ninja Warrior Results[]
| ANW | # | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | Failed Jumping Spider (Stage One) | ||
| 16 | Failed Jumping Spider (Stage One) | Digest. |
Trivia[]
- During ANW 12, she and Julius Ferguson were the only competitors to not be associated with a team captain. However, from external information, it was revealed they were invited to be part of Drew Drechsel's team. Drechsel was edited entirely out of the season following his arrest in 2020, however she and Ferguson were still shown on broadcast without Drechsel being shown.
- As such, during Qualifier 1 on ANW 12, she was shown to have placed 12th overall in qualifying. However, Taylor herself actually did not make the top 12. and was moved to 12th place to hide the fact that her team captain, Drew Drechsel had actually completed. In a normal circumstance, she would've moved on as part of the womens' top 3 regardless.
- Taylor is one of twelve competitors who won their runoff races to advance to the National Finals. The others are Ramcis Valdez, Sandy Zimmerman, Jaleesa Himka, Erick Zamorano, Violet Kepo'o, Vincent Pane, Sydney Yee, Ixchel Valentino, Elijah Browning, Cal Plohoros, and Caitlyn Bergstrom-Wright.
- Taylor is the shortest women and ninja to attempt and conquer the Jumping Spider, Vegas version of the Warped Wall, and Stage Two.