Kacy Catanzaro paved the way for many female competitors on American Ninja Warrior. In just her second year competing, she became the first woman to scale the Warped Wall, the first woman to hit a buzzer on a qualifying run, and the first woman to hit a buzzer on a city finals run. Overcoming her 5’0” frame to defeat the obstacles made her a fan-favorite ninja and inspired the hashtag #MightyKacy. Despite her achievements, she announced her retirement from American Ninja Warrior in 2017 during season nine. Since then, she has stayed in the public eye, competing in a very different kind of sport.

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Kacy was closely followed by many other female competitors who made it to the top of the Warped Wall, some of whom have also broken other records on the show. Jessie Graff was the first woman to ever compete on ANW: USA vs. The World. Meagan Martin was the first woman to hit a buzzer on a qualifying course in her first competition. Michelle Warnky has the interesting designation of being the first woman (and second competitor) to finish a course with blood on her face. More women compete every year thanks in part to Kacy being one of the early success stories.

Kacy was invited to audition for WWE at the start of 2017, and her contract was announced in late 2017, shortly after she announced her ANW retirement. The timing suggests Kacy left ANW to pursue professional wrestling. While it is a chance for her to use her athletic abilities, it lacks the dignity, not to mention authenticity, of ANW, and has a greater risk of serious injury. The obvious advantage wrestling has is the paycheck. None of the ninjas are paid to be on ANW. Now, Kacy tag-teams with wrestler Kayden Carter and is currently dating fellow WWE wrestler Ricochet.

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Wrestling may not be what Kacy wants to do long-term. She took a break for a few months, explaining the reason in a video on the WWE YouTube channel. She said, “This is people’s dreams since they’re born. But for me, it wasn’t what I always knew I wanted to do…Physically, mentally, I just didn’t know if this was the right place for me.” Ultimately she decided to return, though she also spent some time training in a ninja gym and even posted a video to her Instagram. She hasn’t announced any intention to return and she may not be able to due to her WWE commitment. She may just enjoy training without the pressure of competition.

ANW fans would love to see Kacy make a comeback, especially as season 13 promises to be more normal after COVID-19 restrictions. Kacy inspired many ninja-hopefuls with her hard work and victories on the show. Though she hasn’t been on the show for several years, she hasn’t been forgotten. She will always hold a place in ANW history. It doesn’t seem like she has found her dream career yet, but the same work ethic and determination that made her a success on American Ninja Warrior will help her succeed at whatever she chooses to take on next.

Source: WWEPC, Kacy Catanzaro/Instagram

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Veronica Brush
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Veronica Brush is a writer of many words. When she’s not contributing to Screen Rant, she can usually be found in a dark corner, composing tales of fantastical futures. Her musings include a novella series about murder in the first Martian colony and a short story about robot psychology. The rest of the time, Veronica can be found doing her actual full-time job: snuggling her dogs (a job for which she has yet to be paid.)

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