It was not until 2021 that Viktoria Krämer made her debut with Ninja Warrior Germany in the 6th season, after which she was invited to the “Allstars” season, where she drew attention to herself with a strong increase in performance.
On October 7th, the ninja athlete can be seen in the second preliminary round show (8:15 p.m., on RTL, RTL+ and in the sport.de live ticker) of the 7th season. In the exclusive sport.de-Interview tells “Tricky Vicky” how this sport has changed her everyday life and has tips ready for newcomers. She also reveals the goals with which she now starts the course.
Viktoria, in Season 6 you took part in Ninja Warrior Germany for the first time. What did you think when you first entered the set?
Victoria Kramer: The set is very large. Normally you always train in a small hall. The dimensions that awaited you there were quite unexpected. You always imagine something and you see it on TV. But when you stand in front of the huge course, you are initially overwhelmed. Then there is a bit of panic because you have to start the course right away. But it was also a cool feeling to know that this is a set where they are shooting something for TV.
Was it weird when you saw yourself on TV for the first time?
Yes! When we were first shown how to stand on the launch pad, I was so excited I couldn’t remember looking back. This scene of then seeing myself and not being with me at all was very strange. But after the first obstacle I was more in the course and more with myself again. In any case, it was very unusual.
Last year you failed the domino route, narrowly missing out on the Allstars final. What are your plans for season 7?
I was pretty frustrated for the first few weeks after falling on the Domino Way. Also because I had practiced a lot of balance beforehand. I was hoping that I would make the balance obstacle. Then the invitation to the Allstars relay came at exactly the right time. There I was able to show that I can master the balance obstacles and prove it to myself again. This further motivated me to train for Season 7.
I then tried to train stages in a more targeted way. In other words, building up obstacles one after the other that react differently in order to become more secure in the different balance areas. On the show you only have one try at a time. At the same time, I tried to distance myself more from the result. I did this mainly to protect myself in case things didn’t go so well. I want to have fun on the show, but you can’t always control what comes out at the end. It is very likely that you will fall sooner or later.
Does that mean you’ve also worked a lot mentally on yourself?
Yes, exactly! I’ve also told a lot fewer people this year that I’m going to be in Season 7 because I felt like the more people know about my going, the more pressure I’m putting on myself personally. I also didn’t post on social media that I was back, just trying to take the pressure off you can build up outside of the show. I was hoping to start Season 7 more relaxed and perform better. None of my family was there either, although of course they support me in my sport.
There are some new obstacles this year, including the glasses trail and the wall jump. Is there one thing that you would rather avoid in your preliminary round or one that you would even be happy about?
In general, the obstacles I fear the most are all obstacles that require good surefootedness. Most of the time it is the first obstacle, because you often have to run fast or pedal with precision. Those are the obstacles I have the most respect for. The obstacles I enjoy the most are the ones that I know are all about hanging for a long time. Because I’m very good at that. I am less afraid of such obstacles. Everything that is very dynamic, where you have to react quickly, are things that I don’t feel so comfortable with. That’s why I try to include these things more consciously in my training. I try to work on my weaknesses a lot because a good ninja should be broad.
Your development in the last year is enormously impressive. how did you get so good so fast
I think it’s very important that you’re consistent in your training. I think one of my strengths is that I’m very disciplined. I don’t just train when I feel like it, I say in general: I want to train as often as I can! Of course I also have the moments that everyone knows: I get up and don’t feel like training at all. Then I go anyway and afterwards it always feels good and I’m proud of myself. I try to focus more on the feeling I have after training.
It is very important who you train with. It’s important to have people with you who push you beyond your own limits and encourage you. I think I have a very good basis with the people around me. In addition, of course, there is my friend Lukas [Kilian, Anm. d. Red.], who showed me this very well. Especially because of his victory at Allstars, which motivated me even more. You want to be able to keep up in a certain way. I want to show that I can do it too.
As you just mentioned, your friend Lukas Kilian is also an avid ninja athlete. As one of two managing directors, he opened the stunt factory in Send in May 2022. How much time do you spend in the hall yourself?
After Lukas decided to join Stuntwerk Senden, he started to reschedule the originally planned obstacles. He asked me for my opinion, what I think is good or what could be done a little differently. I also tried to help where I could. I helped design the hall a bit more, for example developing the color scheme and painting the walls at the back.
Because the hall is there now, we have two large training opportunities in Ulm to train ninja. In the Free.Ground Academy [von Christian Balkheimer, Anm. d. Red] as well as in the sending stunt work, there are different obstacles, so that the pool of training opportunities has grown even larger.
After the Allstars relay, you said that you made more friends in the sport of ninja than in any other sport. What does the ninja community mean to you?
I think what’s special about the ninja community is that ninja isn’t really a team sport when you’re competing on the course. Everyone has to enter the course alone. In a way, you also compete against each other, since only a certain number of people progress at the end. But what connects us all is that we are exposed to this course together. That means you can empathize extremely with the others. You can see it a little from the point of view: all of us against the course! It’s just a very connecting feeling.
Women are getting stronger and more competitive. How does it feel to be part of this strong generation of women?
It’s a mega feeling! Above all, that I also have the feeling that I am now a role model, especially for younger women and children. I feel like getting stronger physically makes me stronger mentally as well. I become much more self-confident in my everyday life and speak my mind more often. This also applies to things that have nothing to do with the ninja sport.
Sure, a woman has to put in more work to become strong than a man has to. But she can do it too! I think it’s important for a lot of women to see that they can climb the ladder to heaven too. What we women sometimes can’t do with strength, we can make up for with good technique. Especially in America you can see how strong women can become. But we are also on the right track in Germany. In the last year, it was particularly due to Steffi [Edelmann, Anm. d. Red] seen making it to the third final stage. That was amazing!
How has your life or everyday life changed as a result of the ninja sport?
I put a lot more time into my training. My daily routine has changed. Also privately I do more with the people from the show. Otherwise, I’m a bit more conscious about my diet, because it can ultimately have a direct impact on my performance. I try to eat healthy, but it doesn’t always work out. In general, a lot of thoughts revolve around the ninja sport. It’s a life you choose.
What advice would you give to someone who is new to the sport of ninja? How should you start training?
When you start new, it is important whether you have come from a sport that is designed for grip strength or endurance, for example. Of course, this means that you have different physical requirements. That’s why many from the bouldering sport come to the ninja. If the physical prerequisites are missing, you have to build them up first in order to be able to hold on to the obstacles. After that, it’s important to learn how to fall correctly. That is, what happens if I may not be able to hold the obstacle? Are there enough mats to catch me, etc.? Then you should start slowly and set small goals. That way you can improve from time to time.
Natalie Salewski conducted the interview