Meagan Martin made history in 2014 by becoming the third woman to conquer the infamous warped wall in the National television series American Ninja Warrior. She was also the first rookie to complete a qualifying course and went on to become the first woman at the National finals to complete the jumping spider and halfpipe attack—which are obstacles that are just as hard as they sound. Martin has continued to make National finals every year since, with the exception of 2019. 

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In spite of her success, Martin only trains for American Ninja Warrior a few months out of the year. Her main focus is on climbing.

Martin’s athletic career started at the age of five in gymnastics, and, although she discovered climbing soon afterwards, she switched her focus to pole vaulting throughout high school and college. By the end of her Junior year at Vanderbilt University, in Nashville, Tennessee, climbing was on Martin’s radar once more. She starting climbing once a week throughout her senior year and, since graduating, has become a regular on the US National Climbing Team. 

Martin attributes her success on American Ninja Warrior to not only climbing but every sport she’s competed in. “Gymnastics, climbing, and pole vaulting are all sports that involve movement, timing, coordination and body control,” she told Gym Climber.

At 30 years old, Martin is still an avid competition climber, but she’s transitioning to another role in the field: commentating. Martin became an ESPN commentator for USA Climbing events in 2019. Moving forward, her goal is to commentate the Olympics.

For those looking to master this type of movement, whether it be for American Ninja Warrior or a similar comp-style dyno, Martin recommends to keep your hips high when you release and catch.

Happy Friday!

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