The Jewish Link and The Humble Toast would like to recognize Ava Sklar as this week’s Sportstar of the Week. The third grader at Westchester Day School is a highly regarded athlete in the American Ninja Warrior circuit. When asked about Ava, Lucio Battista of The Grit Ninja told the Jewish Link, “Ava always has a positive outlook during practices and on competition days. I can always count on her to be in high spirits with her quick wit and a big smile on her face. Ava can always be heard cheering on her fellow teammates, whether it be while she’s waiting her turn during practice or at a competition. One of the things that I’ve always enjoyed about being Ava’s coach is her willingness to learn and grow. She is not perturbed by a difficult challenge. Many times Ava will stay 10-15 mins after practice has ended to try to improve on a skill she didn’t accomplish. When it comes to her ninja athleticism I’m proud to say she has been vastly improving each year she has been in our program at The Grit Ninja. Ava is a member of our Team program and this season she rose to the top of the points leader board for the World Ninja League in her division and qualified for the World Championships. One of the skills Ava has been working on now for a while is what we call linking. This requires a tremendous amount of upper body power, technique and hand eye coordination to master. Linking is when an athlete makes forward progress through an upper body obstacle without taking any back swings. The reason this is so important in the sport of ninja is because it saves time and energy during a competition. Just about a week or so ago it all came together for Ava, after months of working on learning the skill, it just clicked. As a coach it’s one of the best moments to see the look on an athletes face when they accomplish something they have been working at for so long. On behalf of all of Ava’s coaches at The Grit Ninja we are proud to have her as a member of our team and community. We look forward to seeing her continue to grow on and off the ninja course.” Coach Kye Ackel of No Limit Ninja added “Ava is a remarkable student, she is constantly pushed past her limits and has shown an unwavering determination to become stronger. I’ve only gotten the chance to be with her this past year, and truth to be told she has come leaps and bounds from when I first met her. She always has a smile on her face whether she fails or completes the obstacle. You can tell she has pure passion for this sport and it’s a beautiful thing to see in our community. To have kids and adults thriving to become better versions of themselves. Ava continues to get stronger day by day and I’m happy to play a small part in her journey.”

Ava congratulations on being recognized as this week’s sportstar of the week. Who is your role model and why?

My role model is my mother because she’s the best mom. She tries to do everything for me that she can. She drives me to ninja practice three nights a week and sits there for hours each time for me to train. She also drives me to competitions and they can be far away and take all day. My mom always cheers for me and all my friends and encourages me no matter how I do. She’s the best mom ever and I love her

What is your favorite sport?

My favorite sport is ninja. It’s always different obstacles and new challenges that make me stronger and learn new skills

What is your greatest sports accomplishment?

My greatest sports accomplishment is going into Worlds ranked #3 in my age division. I’m one of the youngest if not the youngest in the age division because my birthday is at the very end of December and the cut off is January 1

Who is your favorite athlete and why?

All of my coaches because they compete just like me and some are on the TV show American Ninja Warrior. They show me that even if I fail an obstacle it’s ok, just get back up and keep trying, never give up. My coaches always cheer for me and encourage me to try my best and they push me to do the best that they know I could do

What is your pregame routine?

Before every course run my mother and I say “stay brave, stay strong, try your best” then I take a deep breath and wait for the buzzer so I can start my run.

What is your funniest sports memory?

When my coaches were teaching me to flip over a board while holding onto it and they told me they would catch me if I fell. I fell on my face and yelled “you were supposed to catch me” and they started laughing. But I got up and tried again and completed the obstacle

What do you like to do when you are not playing sports?

My favorite thing to do when I’m not playing sports is going to the Bronx Zoo with my mom because I love animals and I want to be a marine biologist. I like staying home and playing board games with my mom and playing games outside

What is your favorite sports moment?

My favorite sports moments are when I won 1st place in a competition and also when I came in 3rd place at the All Star competition

What is the best thing about being a Sportstar?

I met lots of ninja friends and they became my ninja family

The Humble Toast Sportstar of the Week will receive a $25 gift card to The Humble Toast. Please send nominees for an upcoming The Humble Toast Jewish Link Sportstar of the Week to Sports@jewishlinknj.com