Monroe Weatherman Competes In Semi-Finals Of 'American Ninja Warrior'

MONROE, CT — A Monroe meteorologist and gym owner is in the running — and diving, and climbing, and jumping, and balancing — for the top prize of $1 million on NBC's "American Ninja Warrior" competition series.

Joe Moravsky, 34, has breezed through the preliminary contests in the show's 15th season, and is looking ahead to the semi-final events, broadcast Mondays at 8 p.m. and streamed on Peacock.

It's not Moravsky's first time on the Mega Wall. He's an 11-time ANW veteran, and a 9-time Las Vegas finalist. He made his first appearance on the show in season five, which aired in 2013.

The current season has introduced a number of format changes, along with some more challenging obstacles, but nothing changed the game more than lowering the minimum age requirement to 15 years old in season 13.

"These kids, they've been training since they first saw the show when they were five years old," Moravsky told Patch. "So even though I've been on the show for 10 years, they've been watching the show for 10 years, training for seven years. And they're lighter, younger, maybe a little faster. But you know, I got them on the experience and just the expertise, of course."

Competition with the teens looms largely in another new format being introduced into the semi-finals:

"Usually, semi-finals is a 10 obstacle course. And anybody that clears, anybody who goes far enough, fast enough, will also move on to Vegas. Well, this year, it's a head-to-head, side-by-side race, and the winner goes to Vegas," Moravsky said.

The constantly evolving format and challenges of the competition have not changed how Moravsky trains. He said he leans on the math background he picked up while studying for his broadcast meteorology degree at Western Connecticut State University to help him "understand the physics and the movement required to beat obstacles."

His WCSU degree led to an on-air News 12 gig in Norwalk, but Moravsky's meteorology work these days is primarily freelance, while he manages Stamford Ninja Academy in Stamford. Still, it was enough for him to earn "The Weatherman" as his nom de ninja on the hit series.

Whether or not he wins the million dollars, Moravsky's decade on ANW has helped him reconcile two lifelong aspirations. A basketball, soccer and baseball player in high school, Moravsky said he always dreamed of being a professional athlete, but put those ambitions aside for a meteorology career. Now, as the wall-climbing American Ninja Weatherman, he's living the best of both lives.

Moravsky moved to Monroe in 2017, joining his wife, a third-grade teacher who is a lifelong resident. They have been married nine years, and the couple has three children, 2, 5, and 7 years old.

The Monroe ninja will be hosting a viewing party at Stamford Ninja Academy from 7:45 - 9:00 p.m. Monday, according to his Facebook page.