Ohio State alum takes boomerang world by storm

Ashley Diggins
Tue, 10 Apr 2018 02:52:45 +0000
Arts & Life, american ninja warrior, boomerang, boomeranging, Dude Perfect, featured, General Electric, Gregg Snouffer, Logan Broadbent, Ohio State alumnus, the oval, US Boomerang Team

Ohio State alumnus Logan Broadbent is the No. 1 ranked boomerang thrower in the United States. Courtesy of Jami Kinton.

Most Ohio State students spend time on The Oval petting dogs or playing frisbee. Logan Broadbent, however, was cultivating what would turn into a successful athletic career.

Broadbent, an Ohio State alumnus, is a premier athlete in the unconventional sport of boomerang throwing: He is currently ranked No. 1 in the country and No. 2 in the world.

He recently partnered with Dude Perfect, a popular YouTube sports channel, to show off his boomerang skills. The video went viral, reaching more than 10 million views in 24 hours and 20 million in a week.

Broadbent said he started boomerang throwing very young because his father was on the U.S. Boomerang Team. The younger Broadbent made the team at age 14 and has competed ever since. ??

He introduced the sport to many of his classmates during his time at Ohio State.

“I used to throw a boomerang around out on The Oval and it always turned a lot of heads,” he said. “Everybody would walk up and say ‘What are you doing?’ Everyone would have to try it.”

He said he took his exams early senior year so he could fly to Rome to compete in the boomerang throwing world championship, which his team won.

When the five men behind the Dude Perfect channel asked him to collaborate, Broadbent said he was thrilled.

“They were super awesome, super fun,” he said. “You can tell in the video everybody just had a good time.”

Logan Broadbent poses with the creators of Dude Perfect YouTube channel. Credit: Courtesy of Jami Kinton.

The video is six minutes and 10 seconds packed with Broadbent performing outrageous boomerang tricks, including his signature backflip catch.

Since the video went viral, Broadbent said thousands of people have reached out to him from around the world about boomerang throwing. He has his own business selling boomerangs, and he said sales have skyrocketed.

“It really exploded,” he said.

He said the video has brought other opportunities for him. He was contacted by Ripley’s Believe It Or Not and has been offered the opportunity to produce a line of Logan Broadbent boomerangs.

Mostly, he said he is just excited about all the attention he is bringing to boomerang throwing, a relatively unrecognized sport.

“Boomerangs are my passion. They’re my love. It’s what I’ve always done,” he said. “I’ve been lucky enough to be an advocate for the sport and help grow the sport.”

Gregg Snouffer, a fellow Ohio State alumnus and Broadbent’s coach on the U.S. national team, said he feels the same way.

“The attention that Dude Perfect has brought to the sport is incredible,” Snouffer said. “I think they really highlighted the skill that is involved and I know that the video is already stoking the natural curiosity that kids have about boomerangs. The sport needs more young people, so opportunities like Dude Perfect with great ambassadors like Logan can really help.”

Broadbent is not just a boomerang thrower. He also works at General Electric and competed on American Ninja Warrior for the past two seasons. ?

He will be returning for this third season at the end of the month, and said he hopes to continue bringing attention to boomerangs through the show.

“I have a feeling a lot more people are going to recognize me this year,” he said.