“Deaf Ninja” Kyle Schulze advances to finals

“Deaf Ninja” Kyle Schulze was on NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior” last night and competed in its semifinal round. He advanced from the opening round to be in the semifinal. He competed head-to-head with another semifinalist and Kyle won his race and reached the buzzer to advance to the finals in Las Vegas.

I watched it and I’ll recap what happened.

Before Kyle started his race, his opponent, a hearing man named Jesus Capote, signed, “God bless you” to him. Kyle exclaimed, “He knows sign!” and told him “God bless you” back. They then took their starting positions.

Kyle’s girlfriend Raquel McPeek was in the audience cheering him on, just like she did during his opening round this season.

Kyle was very confident as he moved through the first two obstacles. On the third obstacle, the Wingnuts, Jesus fell into the water and was eliminated. Kyle looked at him with a bit of sadness and clapped before he moved forward and completed the remaining obstacles and hit the buzzer.

He signed, “I earned that!” It’s amazing for Kyle because it took him eight seasons to reach the buzzer. He didn’t make it in the past and fell into the water again and again. But now he’s reached the buzzer in two straight competitions, the opener and the semifinals.

If you want to watch the full video of Kyle’s competition, you can check out his Instagram @thedeafninja.

The finals in Las Vegas will be aired in two episodes this Monday, August 19 and next Monday, August 26.

[Full-screen text] Kyle Schulze said he believes he will be on the August 19th episode.

Congratulations to the “Deaf Ninja” on his stellar performance, spreading positivity, and showcasing ASL!

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