Suburban residents compete on national ‘American Ninja Warrior’ TV stage

When season 18 of “American Ninja Warrior” premiered on June 8, six suburban Chicago people were among the 240 or so athletes from across the country vying to compete on one of television’s most difficult obstacle courses.

The local competitors were Steven Bachta, 45, a doctor from Wilmette; Kenzie Hughes, 16, a student from Libertyville; Maggie Owen, 22, a recent college graduate from Aurora; Andrew Pickert, 18, a college student from Naperville; Gabi Stephen, 31, a gymnast from Elgin; and Michael Maher, 61, a construction worker from Joliet.

Four of those athletes — Bachta, Hughes, Owen and Pickert — advanced from qualifying rounds to the show’s central regional final, which airs at 8 p.m. Monday, Aug. 3, on NBC.

This season, a new regional finals format was introduced, replacing the traditional semifinals round from previous seasons. After the initial qualifying rounds, competitors who advance to the regional finals will face off in one event for a chance to proceed to the second.

The first is an obstacle course in which contestants are ranked based on completion time. Those who make it to the second stage will then compete in a three-lane race with the two top competitors from each advancing to the finals.

A contestant who hits a buzzer at the end of an obstacle course has completed all of the obstacles. If contestants are not ranked high enough by their speed and completion, they are eliminated from competition.

In the show that aired Monday, July 27, Hughes earned her first buzzer. She previously competed on season 17 but was eliminated after her third obstacle during the qualifying round.

Owen also hit the buzzer during the Monday night show. It was her second buzzer — the first occurring in 2023 during season 15.

Each contestant’s journey to the televised competition is different.

Bachta said his daughters introduced him to the sport when they started watching “American Ninja Warrior Junior” and wanted to get involved.

After training at an Ultimate Ninja Gym, Bachta decided five years ago he was going to try to get on the show.

“The first time I applied, I didn’t get that first season, and so it took me two full cycles to actually get a callback,” he said.

Since then, Bachta has competed on the show for four seasons. He hit the buzzer for the first time last year, and repeated the feat in the show that aired July 27.

In addition to Bachta’s late-night gym training, he works as a doctor, logging 24-hour shifts as a pediatric specialist with Endeavor Health. Because of his busy work schedule, he fits in workouts wherever possible, he said.

Owen said she has been involved with “American Ninja Warrior” since she was in high school, first appearing on the show’s adult competition when she was 15. Her early passion for rock climbing led to her learning about ninja, she said.

Her first opportunity to compete for the show was unexpected. At the time, the show’s age requirement was 19. So she was surprised to receive a call from one of the show’s executive producers asking her to compete, she said.

“I had gotten invited because the producers on the show basically had seen a bunch of teenagers from around the country doing really well in local competitions and they were like, ‘Why should we make them wait until they’re 19?’” Owen said. “So they ended up handpicking 10 boys and 10 girls between the ages of 15 and 18 to compete on season 12, and I happened to be one of them.”

Leading up to the show, Owen said she often trains with other competitors in the Chicago area, using gyms late at night after they close so they can recreate obstacle courses similar to those on the show. She also works at two ninja gyms during the week now that she’s graduated from North Central College in Naperville.

“Most days I work in the afternoon, morning, whatever, and then I go to the gym,” she said. “Most of the time, late nights, I show up to the gym, and I don’t go to bed until after midnight.”

Stephen, a first-time competitor on the upcoming season’s show, found her way to ninja after competing in gymnastics for many years.

For her, transitioning to the sport required learning a new set of skills, especially after spending the last four years competing on a gymnastics scholarship at Michigan State University.

“Everyone got to be my coach, and that was something that was exciting for me,” she said. “When I went into ninja, it was like I was an amateur. I was nowhere near an elite level athlete compared to all these people who have been doing the sport.”

She grew up watching the show, she said, and after a show producer reached out over Instagram to encourage her to apply, she saw an opportunity to be a part of a tight-knit group.

“The ninja community as a whole is so welcoming and is very special,” Stephen said. “I feel very lucky to be a part of it.”

Alexandra Murphy is a freelance reporter for the Pioneer Press.