Built by an Athlete. Driven by a Passion for the Sport.

I'm Hunter Maughan the founder, developer, and driving force behind Ninja Timer. But before I was building software for the sport, I was an athlete competing in it and I still am.

Ninja has been a major part of my life for over 10 years. Throughout that time, I've experienced the sport from almost every angle. I've competed, coached athletes, officiated competitions, helped organise events, and experienced firsthand what it takes to perform and operate at a high level.

I'm currently competing as an Australian Pro Male, ranked Number 1 in New South Wales, Top 5 in Australia, and Top 10 globally. Competing at an elite level, both nationally and internationally, has given me a unique understanding of what athletes, coaches, judges, gyms, and event organisers actually need.

I've experienced the pressure of competition, the importance of accurate timing, the challenges of running events, and the frustration that comes when the technology supporting the sport doesn't work as it should.

That experience is what started everything.

I didn't set out to build another stopwatch. I wanted to build something that could genuinely improve the sport I love.

Ninja Timer was created from that ambition: to bring better technology, greater consistency, and more opportunities to the ninja community.

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Why Ninja Timer Exists

Ninja Timer exists because I believe the sport deserves better tools.

Ninja Warrior has grown significantly, with athletes pushing new limits, gyms developing stronger programs, and competitions becoming increasingly professional. Yet the technology supporting the sport hasn't always kept pace.

Timing systems can be unreliable, competition workflows can be complicated, and organisers are often left trying to manage multiple tools just to run a successful event.

As someone who has experienced these problems firsthand, I saw an opportunity to do something about it.

I wanted to create a system that made life easier for everyone involved.

Something an athlete could trust. Something a judge could operate confidently. Something a coach could use to track development. Something an organiser could rely on when running an entire competition.

That idea became Ninja Timer.

My purpose has never been simply to create an app and release features. It's to build technology that solves real problems, improves the experience of the sport, and helps ninja continue to grow.

I want athletes focusing on their performance, coaches focusing on development, and organisers focusing on delivering great events, without having to worry about the systems running behind the scenes.

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The Journey: From an Idea to a Growing Platform

Ninja Timer has been a journey of constant development, experimentation, learning, and improvement.

Every version has represented another step towards the bigger vision.

Versions 1 & 2 – The Foundations

Before Ninja Timer ever reached the public, there were two earlier versions.

Versions 1 and 2 were never officially published. They were development stages where the original ideas were tested, features were explored, problems were identified, and the foundations of the system began to take shape.

They weren't the finished product, but they were important steps in discovering what Ninja Timer could become.

Version 3 – The First Official Release

Version 3 was the first version of Ninja Timer to go live.

This was where the idea became a real product that people could use. It introduced the core timing and competition functionality and marked the beginning of Ninja Timer's journey beyond my own development environment.

It was the starting point, not the destination.

Versions 4 & 5 – Expanding the Possibilities

Versions 4 and 5 brought significant improvements, new features, and a much broader vision for what Ninja Timer could offer.

The focus shifted beyond simply timing runs. Competition management, results, analytics, additional tools, and a more connected experience became increasingly important.

These updates helped transform Ninja Timer from a basic timing solution into a more capable platform for athletes, coaches, gyms, and event organisers.

Every update brought new lessons, new challenges, and a clearer understanding of what the community needed.

Version 6 – Changing the Game

Version 6 represents the biggest step forward in the Ninja Timer journey.

This isn't just another update with a few extra features. It's a major evolution in the direction of the platform.

The vision is to bring together timing, competition management, athlete development, analytics, artificial intelligence, and connected event tools into one ecosystem.

With features and developments including:

• Training Mode: A dedicated environment for athletes and coaches to manage training, record progress, build workouts, track skills, and develop over time.

• Head to Head: Competitive racing experiences, allowing two athletes to race using one device or separate devices.

• Ninja IQ: An AI-powered assistant designed to bring another level of support, information, and interaction to the ninja community.

• Advanced Analytics: More meaningful performance insights for athletes, coaches, and competition organisers.

• Live Results: Connected competition results that make it easier for spectators, athletes, and organisers to follow events.

• OBS Overlay: Tools to bring live competition information into broadcasts and streams.

• Ninja Timer Web: Expanding access beyond the mobile app, providing browser-based timing, judging, event management, results, and data tools.

• A Connected Platform: Bringing more of the ninja experience together across training, competitions, and athlete development.

Version 6 is about thinking bigger.

It's about moving beyond what a timing app traditionally offers and creating something that can support the sport throughout an athlete's journey, from their first training session to competing on the international stage.

I want Version 6 to be remembered as the point where Ninja Timer became something much bigger than originally imagined.

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My Mission

To develop technology that makes ninja sport more accessible, organised, competitive, and rewarding.

I want to create tools that genuinely improve the experience for athletes, coaches, judges, gyms, and event organisers.

I believe technology should support the sport, not complicate it. It should remove unnecessary pressure, improve fairness, encourage development, and give people better opportunities to participate and succeed.

My mission is to keep identifying the problems within the sport and building practical solutions that make a difference.

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My Vision for the Future

My vision extends far beyond a timing application.

I want Ninja Timer to become a recognised technology platform within the global ninja community.

A platform that can support an athlete throughout their entire journey:

• Starting out in their local gym.

• Learning new skills and developing technique.

• Training with coaches and tracking improvement.

• Participating in local competitions.

• Comparing performances and analysing results.

• Competing nationally and internationally.

• Following events through live results and broadcasts.

I also want to continue developing tools that make life easier for gyms and competition organisers, helping them manage their operations with greater confidence and consistency.

There is still so much potential within this sport, and I believe the technology supporting it should grow alongside it.

The long-term goal is to build a connected ecosystem that can support different areas of ninja sport, while remaining simple and accessible to the people using it.

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Built Independently. Built With Purpose.

Ninja Timer is independently developed and operated. I take responsibility for the direction, design, development, and continued improvement of the platform.

That means every feature, update, and improvement is driven by a genuine understanding of the sport and the challenges people experience within it.

There have been plenty of challenges along the way. Learning new technologies, solving technical problems, rebuilding systems, testing ideas, and constantly finding ways to improve the product.

But that's part of building something from the ground up.

I don't have a large software development company behind me. Ninja Timer has grown through my own commitment, countless hours of development, and a genuine desire to give something back to the sport.

I also believe that building a good product means listening. Feedback from athletes, coaches, judges, gyms, and organisers plays an important role in shaping what comes next.

The goal isn't to release features just for the sake of having more features. It's to build things that people actually need and want to use.

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The Ninja Timer Ecosystem

Ninja Timer is developing into a collection of connected tools designed to support different areas of the sport.

Ninja Timer – App

The core timing and competition application. Designed for accurate timing, scoring, results, and competition management, with tools that work in real training and event environments.

Ninja Timer – Web Displays

Bringing Ninja Timer into the browser. Designed to expand accessibility and provide tools for timing, judging, managing events, reviewing results, and exporting competition data across devices.

OCR Pro

A separate platform focused on obstacle course racing, helping support event management, athlete tracking, and race-day organisation.

Together, these projects represent a broader ambition: building practical technology for obstacle-based sports and the communities surrounding them.

You can use individual tools depending on your needs, with the wider vision being to create a more connected experience across the ecosystem.

What Matters to Me

There are a few things I will never compromise on:

Accuracy. Timing and results must be dependable. Athletes deserve to know that their performances are being recorded fairly.

Reliability. Tools need to work when they matter most, especially during training sessions and live competitions.

Simplicity. Technology should make things easier, not introduce unnecessary complexity.

Accessibility. I want people at every level of the sport to have access to useful tools, without unnecessary financial barriers. Keeping Ninja Timer's core functionality free is an important part of that commitment.

Innovation. The sport is constantly evolving, and I want the technology supporting it to evolve too.

Most importantly, everything comes back to purpose. If something doesn't genuinely improve the experience of the sport, it needs a better reason to exist.

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Looking Ahead – This Is Only the Beginning

I started Ninja Timer because I saw a problem within a sport that means a lot to me.

What started as an idea for a better timing system has grown into something with much bigger ambitions.

I'm proud of how far it has come, from the early unpublished versions to the first public release, through the major improvements in Versions 4 and 5, and now towards the next generation with Version 6.

But I'm even more excited about what's ahead.

I want to keep pushing boundaries, exploring new technology, listening to the community, and finding ways to make ninja better for everyone involved.

I want to see Ninja Timer used in local gyms, school programs, training facilities, national competitions, and major international events.

I want athletes to have better ways to measure their progress, coaches to have better tools to develop their athletes, and organisers to have systems they can trust.

Most of all, I want to contribute something meaningful to a sport that has given me so much.

I'm not building Ninja Timer just to create an app. I'm building it because I believe in the sport, its people, and what it can become.

This is my passion. This is my purpose. And this is only the beginning of the Ninja Timer journey.

Built by the sport. For the sport. Driven by the future.

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