Over the weekend I was at Live Training Center in Palmetto to shoot some images of the UNAA Regionals. UNAA stands for Ultimate Ninja Athlete Association and here’s the link. This is Calle Alexander from Miami who made it to the third round. Here he’s dismounting one of the obstacles in a cloud of chalk. The next section involved a lot of hanging and so he had an abundance of it on his hands as he moved on.
Daily Image
This type of sport is not necessarily mainstream, but it’s become wildly popular due to the NBC Ninja Warrior series. Some of the competitors here have been on the show and are regulars each season.
links to the photos from the two-day event
There’s a real sense of community and camaraderie when the athletes get together. They are competing fiercely, yet everyone is cheering and high-fiving everyone else. It’s not easy to finish any one round and most don’t. But whether someone falls at the beginning or makes it to the end, they’re all roundly cheered.
It was a great weekend photographing the competition and more than anything I enjoyed hanging out with the amazing athletes of the ninja community.