Ancient Greek mythology tells the story of Icarus, who famously ignored his father’s warning about flying too close to the sun. As a result, the wax which had affixed the man-made wings to his body melted, and Icarus plummeted from the sky into the churning sea below.
For a modern-day retelling of Icarus’ flight, flash forward a couple of millenia to the outskirts of the Las Vegas strip — site of the sprawling obstacle course for American Ninja Warrior All Stars 2017 competition.
[fusion_title size=”4″]DREW DRECHSEL: MODERN-DAY ICARUS[/fusion_title]
As damn broke on a new Nevada day, the dessert sun illuminated a modern-day myth in the making.
On an obstacle known as the Super Sonic Shelf, Drew Drechsel suffered his own Icarus-like cumeuppance in an attempt to fly between two small hand grips spaced 15 feet apart over a pool of water. But unlike the man of Greek myth, Drechsel dried himself off and went airbourne once more, this time catching hold of his target and engendering rapturous approval from the assembled audience.
ANW commentator Akbar Gbaja-Biamila was left repeating, “The champ is here,” while Drechsel’s fellow competitors — Najee Richardson, Brett Sims and Meagan Martin — applauded in appreciation of his superhuman feat.
[fusion_title size=”4″]FLIGHT TRAINING[/fusion_title]
Drechsel’s ability to fly is no accident. He spends countless hours in the gym training in mid-air acrobatics.
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