Even though she didn’t make it through Stage 1 of the TV show “American Ninja Warrior” Las Vegas finals, a Maine native made history in getting there.
Jesse Labreck, an Oakland native who had an outstanding track and field career at Messalonskee High School and the University of Maine, advanced to the hit show’s Las Vegas finals, becoming the first female rookie competitor to do so.
“American Ninja Warrior” is an athletic competition show in which contestants attempt to overcome challenging obstacles.
Labreck, who stands 5-foot-7, conquered a whopping nine obstacles in the Philadelphia city finals, which aired on NBC in late August, to advance to the challenging Las Vegas course.
Labreck’s run in the competition would come to a halt in Stage One of the Las Vegas finals. She made it through three obstacles before failing to complete a challenging stage called the Jumping Spider, in which competitors had to jump onto a trampoline between two glass walls, attempting to advance across the water with their feet and hands on the sides of the wall.
Labreck nailed the trampoline jump but lost her balance after a few seconds. The episode featuring Labreck aired on Aug. 29.
One of Labreck’s fellow female competitors, Jessie Graff of California, became the first woman to ever complete Stage 1.
The Las Vegas finals of the show consist of four stages, and if a competitor conquers Stage 4, they take home $1,000,000.
In addition to her accomplishments in track and field at UMaine, from which she graduated in 2013, Labreck owns five high school state records in track and field.
Labreck was ranked 25th in the country in the seven-event heptathlon in her senior year with the Black Bears.
Follow Ryan McLaughlin on Twitter at @rmclaughlin23
