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Somerset Man Competes On ‘American Ninja Warrior’

Posted at 6:35 PM, May 28, 2019
and last updated 2019-05-28 18:35:26-04

SOMERSET, Ky. (LEX 18) — A Somerset man competed on “American Ninja Warrior” this past weekend and he told LEX 18 that his late father inspired him to apply.

Growing up, Cameron Nave took part in motocross, BMX, rock climbing and wrestling. The Pulaski County native said that he was often encouraged by his dad.

“I mean every weekend we’d be out there riding, rain or sunshine. He never missed a single race I did or a single wrestling meet. He was always there,” said Nave.

Nave said that he and his father watched every episode of “American Ninja Warrior” together, so when his dad died in December, he said it was a no-brainer for him to apply for the show.

In April, Nave got the call.

“It was crazy, my mom was eavesdropping too and she just started screaming,” he said.

His training really started to ramp up after that.

“Pure strength won’t get you very far. Like a lot of bodybuilders are strong but not in the right ways. You’ve got to have good control of your body, good balance, and tremendous grip strength, you’ve got to be able to hold on forever,” he said.

In his bedroom, above the stairs, and at his friend’s homemade climbing gym, Nave prepared for the contest.

This past weekend, he competed.

“The lights and everything, it was crazy, I didn’t expect it. And, yeah, the first night I competed I was extremely nervous. I thought I was going to get sick before I got on the stage,” said Nave.

He can’t tell LEX 18 much about his performance, but he did say that his friends and family were on the sidelines going wild, even though one person was missing.

“My dad would have been, like, superhappy. He probably would have been calling all his friends, bragging about me. I know he would have loved having been there to watch me,” said Nave.