Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with American Ninja Warrior’s Daniel Gil

Daniel Gil is the undisputed king of American Ninja Warrior. Season after season, the Kingdom Ninja has established himself as one of the fiercest athletes, often setting the fastest times in the competition. Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to chat with Daniel about returning as the defending champion, his incredible runs on American Ninja Warrior, and the greatest lesson that American Ninja Warrior has taught him.

PC: In high school, you grew up focused on the arts. What has the transition been like going from that creative outlet to American Ninja Warrior?
Daniel: It prepared me in ways that physical strength never could. Creative arts helped me so much when I got onto American Ninja Warrior when it came to dealing with the anxiety of the lights, the cameras, the audience on the sidelines. For me, it’s similar to giving a performance. I was able to focus on what I was doing and the task at hand. I’m so grateful for my background in theater and how it’s prepared me for a national stage like American Ninja Warrior.

PC: You’ve built this massive following as a result of your incredible runs in the competition. Did you have any expectations heading into your first season?
Daniel: I did. Before my first season, I had been auditioning two years prior to that. I was like, “Okay, I’ve got my shot. I know what I’m capable of.”

When I did get my shot on Season 7, back in 2015, I had already been training. I had already been competing locally at different competitions and placing very well, so I knew what I was capable of. At that point, it was all a matter of, “Can I do it on the big stage?” I was able to do it. I was able to live up to the expectations that I had for myself.

PC: Speaking of that training, what is the preparation like for each season? Has it changed throughout the years?
Daniel: I feel like there are changes that I make every single year based on last season’s performance. If my grip strength gave out in my hands and forearms, then that’s what I’ll focus more on. If I were to fall on a balance obstacle, then I would say, “Okay, I need to focus on that.”

Now, my training is a balanced combination of upper body, lower body, and core. You try to stay well-rounded as a Ninja athlete because you have no idea what obstacles they’re going to bring to the show; you just train for the unexpected. You try to become the best overall functional fitness athlete that you can, and then pray for the best when you arrive at the competition.

PC: Speaking of those obstacles, do you have a favorite?
Daniel: Oh man. There have been hundreds of obstacles that I’ve competed on over the years. Two of the staple obstacles that I really enjoy are the warped wall, or in this case, the Mega Wall, which is the most rewarding obstacle you can do, with ten thousand dollars on the line.

The Salmon Ladder is always a favorite and all the different variations that they seem to be bringing to the competition each year. Sometimes it’s up and down. Sometimes it’s down, up, across. Sometimes it’s up, over, and across. It’s so much fun to get to move that bar all over the place and try to get it in the rungs.

PC: You’ve had a lot of success throughout your Ninja Warrior career. When you look back, is there a particular moment that stands out to you?
Daniel: I feel like each season, there are moments. Over the seven years that I’ve competed on the show, there have been a few milestone moments that have really meant so much to me.

The first one was two years ago, when I was one of only two competitors to make it to Stage 4, the final stage of Ninja Warrior, with a million dollars on the line. Even though I lost by thirty seconds—which is very bittersweet and frustrating—what I learned from that was even in the midst of this disappointment, I still made it there. If I got there once, I can get there again. Then, being able to come back the following year, even in the midst of the pandemic, and come back and win the season…those are two of the most momentous, memorable moments that I have had as an athlete.

Now, with this year, with the re-introduction of the national finals in Vegas, I do have the chance to get a rematch against that final stage and a shot at the million dollars again.

PC: Speaking of winning last season, did that bring any pressure heading into the 2021 season?
Daniel: It actually didn’t. Honestly, the pressure never changes because you never know what to expect. You never know what obstacles you’ll get. You never know who’s competing in your region. But as far as coming back as the defending champion, there was more excitement than ever before. I was like “Can I do it again? I had a great last year. Can I top it? Can I do even better this year?” Instead of pressure, I feel almost joy and excitement for testing the limits of what I’m physically capable of.

PC: This season, they’ve lowered the age eligibility. How has that changed the competition?
Daniel: Oh man. With them lowering the age, it’s going to seriously change the game. These kids are fifteen, sixteen, seventeen years old. They’ve been training for Ninja Warrior as long as I have. They’ve been training since they were little bitty kids. Most of their lives have been solely dedicated to training for Ninja every single day.

They’ve won their national competitions in these different Ninja leagues that have popped up around the nation. They’ve done extremely well. They finally have their chance and the opportunity to showcase their skills and their abilities on the grandest stage ever, which is American Ninja Warrior.

The first episode was a taste of what these kids are capable of and what they’re going to bring to the season.

PC: Throughout your Ninja career, you’ve gotten the opportunity to mentor some of these up-and-comers. What advice do you give them?
Daniel: Dude, it’s such a show, because I can show you pictures of me and Christian Youst where he’s eight or nine. He comes up to my waist. Now, we’ve competed on the same stage and episode.

Then, Isabella Wakeham, who’s one of the teens that competed in my region—I’ve been coaching her since she was ten years old!

It’s been so exciting to see the progression, see this new generation of Ninjas make such an exciting first appearance on the show.

PC: Your run aired on premiere night, and you made it to the semi-finals. Congratulations. But you had a small mishap that we normally don’t see it from you. How did you recoup from a situation like that?
Daniel: Oh man. That’s one of the hardest things about Ninja Warrior: you never know what obstacles you’re going to get. We don’t get to practice on these obstacles beforehand. What you see on television is the first time that we touch those obstacles. Sometimes, it doesn’t feel the way that you thought, or it doesn’t move the way that you thought.

That’s what happened to me last night when I got to the V formation obstacle. I grabbed on, I pulled the ring up, and I thought that it had fully locked into place, but I didn’t realize that I didn’t lift the ring high enough to fully lock in place. When I went for my second move, instead of going up, the ring came jolting down and jarred me straight off. I thought to myself, and even said out loud, “That wasn’t the plan.”

But the reality is, with a sport like Ninja Warrior, it’s the most humbling sport that I’ve ever done, because you can be the strongest, you can be the fastest, but still come up against an obstacle that you’re not prepared for or that takes you by surprise.

Every time I stand at the starting platform, I say a prayer. I’m like, “Lord, I feel strong enough. I feel confident. I’m going to go out there. I’m going to give it everything that I’ve got. I’m going to be proud of that. Now, if and when I hit the buzzer, my hands are going up to you. If I fall, I’m going to show people what it looks like to fall but get back up, and to move forward quickly to use an example for our own lives.” We might not all be athletes, but we do all share the commonality of facing obstacles in our lives.

PC: When you had that mishap, did you have a sense that you already had qualified? What was your thought process in that moment?
Daniel: When I hit the water, first, it was shock. It happened so fast that I thought to myself, “What just happened? What am I doing here in the water?”

Then, after that, I very quickly ran the numbers in my head. I said, “Well, I know that I’ve made it far enough, fast enough to move on, which is the goal. But man, if I’m not the most competitive person out here, I was so close.” I didn’t feel tired at all. I wanted to tackle that Mega Wall. I wanted to get one of the faster times. I wanted to hit that buzzer.

It was bittersweet, but at the end of the day, I am still very grateful to be moving on. You better believe I’m going to focus and put that frustration towards my training for the semi-finals coming up in just over a month.

PC: Having competed on several seasons already, has anything surprised you about this journey? What’s been the biggest lesson you’ve learned having competed on American Ninja Warrior?
Daniel: There are lessons that I learn every single year. Some of the greatest lessons that I have learned is that no amount of preparation, practice, or training can prepare you for the results. All the training that you put into it, when you do hit that buzzer, it still takes you by surprise. It still blows your mind at what you were able to accomplish.

On the other side of the coin, you can train as hard as you can and still make a silly mistake and go out very early in the competition. Then, you have to wait a whole year.

What I tell people all the time, especially when I do speaking events at youth camps or summer camps or when I speak to young people, I tell them every single one of us will fall and fail at one time or another in our life, but we have the option to decide how we’re going to react to it. Are we going to be an egg or are we going to be a bouncy ball? Both can fall, but when the egg falls, it cracks, it breaks. Humpty Dumpty, you can’t put yourself back together. That’s how we feel when we fall or fail. Or we can choose to be like a bouncy ball: still fall, still hit the ground with the same level of impact but bounce back up quickly. I tell people, “I can’t make that decision for you. Your parents, your teachers, mentors, they can’t make that decision for you. It is up to us to decide how we are going to respond to failure.”

I think Ninja Warrior is such a great opportunity to showcase, in real time, what that looks like. Because when you hit the water, people see what you’re made of. Are you going to curse and swear, and jump out, and just yell and rant and rave? Or are you going to learn from it, respect the course, and look forward to the next opportunity?

To keep up with Daniel, follow him on Twitter and Instagram. Watch American Ninja Warrior every Monday on NBC at 9/8c.

Photo Credit: Elizabeth Morris/NBC