Colorado Teen Wins Sword Making Competition Show

A 19-year-old from Boulder County spends his days going to college and his nights working as a blacksmith.

"I call myself The Slacksmith," Justin Simisky told 9NEWS.

While he's working to earn a degree in physics at the University of Colorado in Boulder, Simisky also spends 20 to 30 hours per week working as a blacksmith.

"I just loved knives and fire when I was a little kid," said Simisky. "Eventually, I kind of transitioned a little bit towards blacksmithing and I made a little forge out of an old soup can and some clay and stuff."

Simisky took his craft to a History Channel show called Forged in Fire. In the show, blacksmiths compete against each other with the hopes of going home with a $10,000 grand prize.

"I went in with no expectations and just wanted to go have fun and be goofy on TV, and I ended up actually winning the thing, which is really cool," said Simisky.

While he doesn't want to make his hobby a full-time career, he does have goals of earning his certification as a Master Bladesmith. According to 9NEWS, the certification process takes decades.

"What's important to me is keeping this as something that I love," said Simisky.

Photo: Getty Images