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American Ninja Warrior Season 7 to air this summer in prime time on two US networks. Six major US cities host qualifiers; Las Vegas again to host finals

2015-05-22 00:00:00.0
“American Ninja Warrior” (ANW), the US spin-off of the TBS sports entertainment program “Sasuke,” is back! All new Season 7 to start airing this summer on Monday, May 25. Last summer, Season 6 of ANW was a notable success, winning its time slot during 11 of 14 weeks in the coveted 18-49 age demographic. Versus the prior summer, ANW grew by 18% in 18-49 and by 7% in total viewers.
As it did last season, ANW will air as a two-hour program in prime time on two national television networks: the terrestrial NBC network and the cable Esquire Network.
The qualifying rounds for ANW7 began in Venice Beach, Los Angeles, on March 13 and include five other major US cities - Houston, Kansas City, Orlando, Pittsburgh, along with an all military shoot with current and retired military members in Long Beach, California.
Qualifiers are scheduled to last until the middle of May. The elite few athletes who progress to the finals will take on the world’s most difficult obstacle course: the four stages of “SASUKE,” recreated in full scale on the world-famous Las Vegas Strip.

Returning from ANW6 to host are Matt Iseman and former NFL pro Akbar Gbajabiamila. Kristine Leahy (CBS sports) joins the show this season as co-host.
“SASUKE” content has been sold in 165 countries and territories. Sales extend through Asia, Europe, and North America, as well as the Middle East and Latin America. Following upon the success of local versions of “SASUKE” in the US, Turkey, Sweden, Malaysia, and Singapore, production is also ongoing in the UK for “Ninja Warrior UK” and in Vietnam for “SASUKE Vietnam.” Around the world, whether in the form of broadcasts of the original Japanese program or locally produced versions, “SASUKE” seems to be getting more popular by the day!