"Ninja Warrior" officially becomes an Olympic event, debuting at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
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Tokyo Broadcasting System has officially signed an agreement with Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne to incorporate the obstacle design of "Sasuke/Ninja Warrior" into the new Olympic event—obstacle course.
In 2023, the International Olympic Committee unanimously adopted a resolution to replace equestrian show jumping with show jumping in modern pentathlon, starting with the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The UIPM hosted its first World Skiing Championships in Beijing in 2025, and the Los Angeles Olympics will mark the official Olympic debut of this event.
Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), the production company behind the show "Sasuke" and its numerous global adaptations including "American Ninja Warrior ," has reached a licensing agreement with Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM) to bring the show jumping IP from the show to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Under the agreement, UIPM will use TBS-designed obstacle courses in its show jumping events, and this project will officially replace the equestrian show jumping event in modern pentathlon starting at the Los Angeles Olympics.
The collaboration mechanism is quite clear: UIPM obtains the license to use specific intellectual property rights related to "Sasuke/Ninja Warrior," including multiple obstacle designs, for use in official obstacle races. The two parties began their collaboration as early as 2022, helping to shape UIPM's obstacle race format through a series of pilot events. Subsequently, the International Olympic Committee unanimously approved its inclusion in the Los Angeles Olympics in 2023. UIPM will host its first World Obstacle Course Championships in Beijing in 2025, making the 2028 Olympics the official debut of this sport on the world's highest stage.
This official debut can actually be traced back 30 years. TBS first aired "Sasuke" in 1997 , and the program became an instant hit in Japan. Subsequently, its rights were sold to more than 160 countries and regions, with local versions spawning in more than 25 markets. The American adaptation, "American Ninja Warrior," is now in its 18th season and will premiere on NBC on June 8th—this detail alone fully illustrates how deeply this program format has penetrated mainstream sports entertainment culture. Starting as a prime-time Japanese program that marketed itself on extreme physical challenges and near-impossible feats, it has gradually transformed over 30 years into an international competitive system with official governing bodies, world championships, and even Olympic status.
Modern pentathlon itself has a history of continuous self-renewal. Since the 1912 Olympics, it has consisted of five events: fencing, swimming, show jumping, running, and shooting, and has undergone adjustments almost continuously since then. Running and shooting were integrated into "laser run" in the last round of reforms, while show jumping was removed after the 2024 Paris Olympics, responding to years of calls to improve the sport's entertainment value. Show jumping fills this gap, as it already has a large global audience, which was a core consideration for the International Olympic Committee in making its unanimous decision.
UIPM President Rob Stull, speaking through Variety, stated, "It's been 30 years since TBS transformed obstacle course into a television phenomenon with its original 'Sasuke.'" He added, "Modern pentathlon has never left the Olympic stage since 1912 and has continued to evolve over the decades to respond to the viewing preferences of audiences worldwide." Katsuaki Setoguchi, Managing Director of TBS Holdings, described this collaboration as a "landmark milestone," noting that both parties will work together on cross-promotional initiatives leading up to the Los Angeles Olympics.
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