ALBANY, Ore. – An eight-year-old athlete from Albany recently qualified to compete in the World Ninja League Championships to be held in North Carolina later this month.
Leila Niesslein is the only kid from Oregon to qualify, finishing in the top 10 overall, male or female, at the regional competition held in Bellingham, Washington.
The competition is similar to the show American Ninja Warrior, where competitors have to navigate an intense obstacle course. Leila was watching the show with her dad a few years ago, and was three weeks away from turning five years old when she told her dad it was something she wanted to do.
“I only facilitate the travel and her motivation to do this and get to that level has really driven most of this,” said Sam Niesslein, Leila’s father. “And I’m just really proud of her. I’m in awe that she works as hard as she does for an eight-year-old, and she’s committed as she is.”
Leila’s family has set up a GoFundMe account to help cover the travel expenses to get to North Carolina for the competition. Their goal is to raise $5,000.
As there are only a few ninja gyms in the state, the closest one to Leila is Northwest Ninja Park in Springfield. She started training there in 2019, stopped due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and then eventually returned. Leila’s routine consists of weekly training sessions at the gym, and her dad even turns their backyard and local parks into ninja gyms for even more training opportunities.
Leila said that she saw a video of the national competition, and the intensity of what she saw brought a mixed bag of competition.
“I was like really nervous because we saw the video and there was like a billion people from all over,” Leilla said. “It’s just I can’t put it into words it’s just scary, like it’s the first time. It’s a lot of people.”
Leila and her family will be flying out to the event on June 21.