Puppetry and circus skills are not attributes that immediately make you think of a ninja warrior.
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But the fitness and strength required for these performance genres have set Neal Holmes up for a tilt at the extreme obstacle course of Channel Nine’s new show Australian Ninja Warrior.
Known on the show as Non Stop Neal, the 32-year-old Clunes performer beat about 6000 other applicants to be one of the warriors on the show, appearing in the semi finals on Tuesday.
“I found it a little stressful, because being a performer I put a lot of stress and pressure on myself to make sure I do well,” he said.
Mr Holmes has watched the Ninja Warrior phenomenon since it first began in Japan in 1997.
“I watched it because I like to play with that style of training with my acrobatics and the strength work I do. I adopt that style because it’s really fun to do and doesn’t feel like you’re in a gym pushing weights.”
Mr Holmes set up his own mini ninja course in the back yard of his Clunes home to prepare for challenge.