Although his ninja journey has been relatively short, a young man from the Sault is already finding a ton of success on some of the continent’s biggest stages.
Sylas Snider, an 18-year-old gymnast and Superior Heights graduate, recently placed second in the pro division at the first-ever Canadian Ninja League National Finals in Vancouver, B.C.
The Canadian Ninja League provides athletes of all ages and skill levels with the chance to participate in obstacle course style competitions, similar to ones seen on American Ninja Warrior.
The course is typically less than five minutes, and competitors will attempt to go through as many obstacles as they can – testing their balance, upper-body strength, and coordination.
Back in 2019, the Sault’s newly opened Rebel Gym was where Snider began his ninja training with strength and conditioning coach Tyler Belanger.
There, he upped his athletics after being involved in gymnastics for ten years.
“As COVID hit, I wasn’t able to do gymnastics anymore,” he says. “We’d go into the ninja gym sporadically throughout the pandemic when we were allowed to.”
In 2021, Snider placed second in the amateur category at the world championship which qualified him for the pro division – the most competitive level in ninja competition.
Snider later earned his spot at this year’s nationals after advancing through two qualifier stages, the first of which was held at Rebel Gym.
While his efforts were paying off, his vigorous schedule of training and competing during a pandemic wasn’t always the easiest.
“It was rough during COVID, but it was nice to have something to work towards,” he says. “I was at home and had nothing to do, but we have the gym in our garage so Tyler would program workouts for me and I’d do them at home. It was really helpful to be able to do that whenever I wasn’t feeling great.”
Competition rankings are based on a points system. One completed obstacle earns the competitor one point, and sometimes points will be rewarded halfway through an obstacle. The person who has the most points in the fastest time wins.
After an impressive run in Vancouver last month, Snider just came up short of first place by one point to finish second in Canada’s pro division. He even capped off the weekend with the best overall average in his group, and was the only competitor from Ontario to reach the podium – all of this coming in his nationals debut.
“It was awesome,” he says. “It’s a lot of fun going to a competition across the country because you get to meet a lot of athletes that you just don’t get the chance to see. It was really fun competing against them and seeing what their style was.”
Snider was among four other Rebel Gym athletes who went to Vancouver, and he says they represented the Sault well.
“I’ve gone to a lot of competitions by myself, but our athletes were also there, so it was a lot of fun to be able to be there and support them and for them to be able to support me,” he says. “It was really cool.”
Snider works full time at Rebel Gym, and he even coaches the athletes that ended up going to nationals with him.
“I really enjoy coaching them,” he says. “It’s awesome to see them progress, set goals, and achieve them. It’s fun to help them move towards their goals. I like to watch the other coaches too and see what their strategies are when working with the kids they train.”
Snider says he wouldn’t be able to do any of this without the support from his family, friends, and coaches.
“My parents have been really supportive of me,” he says. “They’ve both driven me to competitions across Ontario and the States, and they’ve really helped with letting me do this. Patrick from a gym in Sudbury and Matt from a gym in Milton have been huge role models for me as well.”
Snider is now preparing for worlds in June 2023, which is to be held in Greensboro, North Carolina.