LONGMONT, Colo. (KDVR) — A Longmont ninja coach has the chance to compete in the sport of obstacle course racing in Belgium this September. 

Glenn Albright, a coach at Warrior Playground in Longmont, got his start in obstacle course racing as a track and field athlete in college.

“It started all the way back when I used to run track and field at the University of Northern Colorado,” he said. “I actually worked barbecue after college for four years before I got into doing some ninja things. And then being inspired off of the TV show ‘American Ninja Warrior,’ I didn’t think it would happen, but eventually, I got to compete on the show, and it was pretty awesome.”

Having competed on the show four times and also traveled to the Philippines to compete, Albright saw an application to represent the United States in Belgium and compete once again in obstacle course racing.

“This Belgium opportunity came up when I saw an application that said the USA is going to try and create a team to head over to Belgium and compete against over 150 countries,” he said. “I quickly applied to see if I had my shot.”

He said he wasn’t chosen at first, but when an athlete dropped out of the team, the company called him to step into that role.

“I gladly accepted,” he said.

How to help fund this ninja warrior

While he is excited to be chosen, Albright said he cannot afford the expenses of the trip.

“For me to get this put together, I had a lot of family, the kids’ parents that I’ve coached, they have definitely helped me out with this, and they put together something where they helped me with a GoFundMe,” he said. “Because this is such a new thing to the U.S., there is no way for it to be funded, so I have to fund everything to go to it.”

To help support Albright in his trip to Belgium, a link can be found here.

Albright said the opportunity of being on the team means the world to him and he hopes it inspires the students he teaches, as well.

“There could be so many people in this position, so for me to feel like I have a place on this spot, I really need to show what I can do. And it’s just starting with me staying dedicated, working hard, keep inspiring, showing that you can do this no matter where you are at. You don’t have to be the best ninja or OCR athlete to do something of this level,” he said. 

Breckan Sparling, a student of Albright, said this opportunity is exciting for all of the people at Warrior Playground.

“Coach Glenn, he’s a really good ninja,” he said. “He would definitely do great in Belgium, and to have this opportunity, it would be really cool if he would get to go. And for him to get to go, that would be super awesome for all of us too, because we could see him, maybe watch him on TV.”