The 8th Competition, official name: SASUKE2001秋 (literally SASUKE 2001 Fall) is arguably one of the best and emotional tournaments to not have a winner. For the whole tournament, a typhoon showered Midoriyama in rains, causing several long rain delays. The rains also caused the course to be very slick.
This tournament introduced a new first obstacle: the Godantobi, which is still used today. The new obstacle eliminated over 50 people. Also, the rains made the Soritatsu Kabe very slick causing several time outs, most notably Shane Kosugi and Yamada Katsumi. Newcomer Jordan Jovtchev, an Olympic gymnast from Bulgaria, took three attempts to clear the Soritatsu Kabe and thus had less than ten seconds when he made it to the Rope Climb. He was able to fly up the Rope Climb and then clear at the very last moment, with 0.00 seconds left on the clock, the closest finish in any stage in history. Before this tournament, Yamada declared he would retire if he could not clear the First Stage. He timed out on the Soritatsu Kabe, however. After which, resumed and was able to scale the Soritatsu Kabe in one shot and completed the remainder of the stage. It was a very emotional moment as many people thought this would be Yamada's last tournament. Despite the rain squall, six were able to clear the First Stage.
In the Second Stage, the time limit was raised to 100 seconds, the highest Second Stage time limit in history. Due to the rains, the electric Gyakusō Conveyor had to be halted to prevent shocking those who crossed it. The field was narrowed down from six to four.
In the Third Stage, the results were vastly better than previous tournaments. Three out of the four competitors made it to the Pipe Slider, with two of them clearing. Jovtchev became the first and only rookie to advance to the Final Stage. American Kane Kosugi also cleared, marking the first time that foreign competitors made it to the Final Stage, a feat that has only been replicated by Taiwanese rock climber Li En Zhi in SASUKE 24.
In the Final Stage, rains were heavy making grip tough. Jovtchev did not scale the Spider Climb fast enough and the walls spread apart before he could reach the Tsuna Nobori. Kosugi made it about halfway up the Rope Climb, but timed out. As the rain poured, he cried at the bottom of the tower. This was Kosugi's final SASUKE tournament.
TBS Date: September 29, 2001
TBS Ratings: 25.8%
SASUKE Announcers:
1st Chair Furutachi Ichiro (Stage 1 (#81-100), Stages 2,3, Final)
2nd Chair Hatsuta Keisuke (Stage 1 (#1-80)
SASUKE Results
Best: Kane Kosugi, Final Stage, Tsuna Nobori
Stage 1: 6 Clears
Stage 2: 4 Clears
Stage 3: 2 Clears
Final Stage: 0 Clears
First Stage
Obstacles
① ^Godantobi 五段跳び
② Rolling Maruta ローリング丸太
③ ^Ōdama 大玉
④ Jump Hang ジャンプハング
⑤ Soritatsu Kabe そり立つ壁
⑥ Tarzan Rope ターザンロープ
⑦ Rope Climb ロープクライム
Time Limit: 77 seconds
^ Denotes New Obstacle
Second Stage
Obstacles
↓ Brick Climb ブリッククライム
② Spider Walk スパイダーウォーク
③ Goren Hammer
④ Gyakusō Conveyor (Stopped) 逆走コンベアー (停止)
⑤ Wall Lifting ウォールリフティング
Time Limit: 100 seconds
Third Stage
Obstacles
② Body Prop ボディプロップ
③ Arm Bike アームバイク
④ Cliffhanger クリフハンガー
⑤ Pipe Slider パイプスライダー
Final Stage
Obstacles
② Tsuna Nobori 綱登り (10m)
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