Verdale Benson is a physician's assistant and former army medic who competed in American Ninja Warrior 10. Prior to competing on ANW, Benson had his newborn son, Sebastian.
American Ninja Warrior 10[]
Benson competed on American Ninja Warrior 10 in Los Angeles. In qualifying, he was one of many to fail the Doorknob Drop. However, his pace guaranteed him a spot in the city finals, placing 27th overall.
In the city finals, however, Benson stumbled on the Spinning Bridge and did not make it in the top 15. He placed 30th overall.
American Ninja Warrior 11[]
Benson returned to compete on American Ninja Warrior 11 in Los Angeles once again. In qualifying he once again failed on a balance obstacle, the Diamond Dash. However, because of the high amount of fails on the earlier obstacles, he managed to placed 26th overall and he once again advanced to the city finals.
During the city finals, he bettered his balance, completing the Diamond Dash. On the back half of the course, he had a close call on the Salmon Ladder, but he was able to get past it. However, he was sapped at The Hinge, but finished it before failing the next obstacle, the Leaps of Faith. However, that performance was good enough to place him 12th, therefore he moved on to the national finals for the first time in his career.
His Vegas run was digested, but it was shown he failed the Double Dipper.
American Ninja Warrior 12[]
Verdale competed in the fourth episode of qualifying. In the qualifier, he managed to complete the course for the first time in his career. He placed 12th overall, so he narrowly moved on to the semifinals with his time.
In the semifinals, he made it to the eighth obstacle, Corkscrew, but could not complete it. He didn't get to the obstacle fast enough to move on to the finals that season.
American Ninja Warrior 13[]
He competed in the fourth episode of qualifying. His run was all cut, but on ANWNation it was stated that he was disqualified on the Log Runner.
However, Verdale later revealed conflicting information on Instagram, stating that he reached the Warped Wall, but suffered a torn achilles when attempting the Mega Wall. He stated that he actually had qualified for the semifinals, but knew he would not be ready to compete in time. (Footage of the injury was shown during his semifinals run the following season).
American Ninja Warrior 14[]
Verdale returned for Season 14 on the final qualifying episode. His run was cut, but it was shown on the leaderboard that he failed Final Frontier, but placed 28th and advanced to the semifinals. There, his run was digested, and he failed Clockwork despite getting past it two years prior.
American Ninja Warrior 15[]
Verdale returned for Season 15 in the first qualifying episode. His run was digested, but it was revealed that he fell on the final transition of Lasso Launch. Despite this, he placed 10th and advanced to the Semifinals again.
During the Semifinals, Verdale had to face Jonathan Godbout, and Jonathan ultimately was triumphant, with Verdale failing Hopscotch. Verdale did not advance to the National Finals.
American Ninja Warrior 16[]
Verdale returned to compete in American Ninja Warrior 16, during the sixth Qualifying round. His run was cut, but he failed Jawbreakers, and placed 9th on the men's leaderboard, earning a trip to the Semifinals.
Verdale later raced against Kevin Rodriguez in the first semifinal episode. Verdale lost the race after he failed on Sideways while Kevin made it to Spin Hopper and he once again didn't advance to the national finals.
Results[]
ANW | # | Result | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
11 | Failed Double Dipper (Stage One) | Digest. |