When 17-year-old Lakeville resident Noah Meunier stepped up to begin his run on NBC’s nationally-televised “American Ninja Warrior,” the broadcaster compared his dark hair and glasses to Clark Kent, the alter ego of Superman.

He might have looked super while conquering all the obstacles, but to Meunier, the course was just a louder and brighter version of what he does in the gym.

On the course, any nervousness dissipated when he realized the obstacles were “things I knew I was capable of doing.”

“It was really cool,” Meunier said of the run. “There were so many lights. It’s a huge course.”

Meunier made his first run through the course during the June 6 episode of the show, which was filmed in Los Angeles. He qualified as one of the 32 semifinalists.

The show, which runs on NBC, features competitors tackling a variety of challenging obstacle courses. 

He finished second in his qualifying group, but he said he’s okay with that: Meunier took about one second longer on the course than his friend Luke Dillon. They met while training in Fall River.

Within the last few years,  “American Ninja Warrior’’ has reduced its age limit to allow teenagers to compete. Meunier was one of the lucky ones to qualify, and he is competing against adults and a few other teens.

But how does a person end up doing obstacle courses competitively?

Meunier tried a bunch of sports as a kid, but nothing really stuck with him. Eventually, he saw the sport commonly known as ninja on TV.

Then, he found Vitality Obstacle Fitness in Fall River. 

Outside of Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical High School, where Meunier is studying to become an electrician, he spends lots of his time training. He even met his girlfriend at the gym, where they push each other to be their best.

Seven years after he first stepped foot in the obstacle gym, Meunier made it to the sport’s grandest stage.

He applied with a video showing off his capabilities on an obstacle course and answered questions, and he was selected to compete on national TV at the course in Los Angeles.

For anyone who wants to follow in Meunier’s footsteps, his advice is to find a ninja gym and run through obstacle courses. He added that the community welcomed him with open arms and helped him hone his skills.

Once he realized how much he enjoyed the sport, he could not stay away.

“My motto is that hard work and trust in God pays off,” Meunier said.

Meunier will compete in the semifinals of  “American Ninja Warrior’’ season 15. The date when the semifinals will air is yet to be announced.