Expectations were high when Olivia Vivian took to the Australian Ninja Warrior course this year as a five time ninja, having been the first Australian female to: conquer the Warped Wall; take on the Power Tower; make it to a Grand Final, and take on the Grand Final stage 2 course.
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She will again battle it out for the title in 2021, this time against Jimmy Burrow, Charlie Robbins, Ashlin Herbert, Bryson Klein - who each won the advantage to skip the semi-finals by winning on the Power Tower. Vivian will also be up against boyfriend, and conqueror of Mt Midoriyama in 2020, Ben Polson, who scraped into the Grand Final after splashing out on the Dragon Back obstacle in semi-final 2.
The former Olympic gymnast has a mantra - It's only impossible until it's done.
Now living with fellow ninjas Polson, Klein, and Fred Dorrington, Vivian says it's a ninja super house.
"We train together and try to push one another. If they catch me sitting on the couch they hold me accountable," she says.
The 32-year-old (this month), says being a ninja warrior changed her life.
"It teaches athletes to overcome obstacles in real life. We're all supportive of each other. There are aspects that are competitive, and we all have the knowledge, so you can't have an ego."
Vivian says she didn't have an idea of what ninja warrior was all about, but she got a call asking if she would come to Sydney to try out for the show five years ago.
"I hadn't trained in years, and I thought it was a show like Wipe Out, like a gag show. When they showed us this course, my mouth hit the floor.
She says the first couple of years were for fun.
"But failing the Warped Wall lit a fire in me. I found a ninja academy and started training.
One of the things she loves about the ninja community is the camaraderie.
"We've met such incredible people on the show.
"I have so much love and admiration for Ben. He really has attacked this goal. Watching him win the show last year was magic. It was terrifying going up against him, knowing there are limited spots in the next round.
"It's hard watching someone go down [on an obstacle]. I feel very lucky to be competing against someone I love. We support each other no matter what."
One of the toughest aspects of the challenge is only seeing the course for about an hour before the show is filmed.
"We don't get to test it or play on it. A lot of people forget that, and this season is not joking around."
For Vivian, ninja isn't just about winning prize money at the top of the mountain.
"It's about motivating young girls to believe in themselves, it is a big part of it for me.
"It's tough. Sometimes I feel like a delusional optimist. It's hard going up against these men. Our anatomy is different."
"But I don't think anyone expected it to be this hard. The show originated in Japan, and this time it's the same mountain as it was there. The producers did a great job, doing research, I have so much respect and am so grateful they have brought so many new flavours to the show.
"As a young gymnast I watched the Sydney Olympics. That games inspired me to become an Olympian and to be on that turf where so many achieved so much, it's an opportunity for greatness."