History was made on NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior” Monday night when 19-year-old Vance Walker became the first back-to-back winner of the $1 million prize. The fierce competitor who trains in Tampa, Florida advanced through all four stages of the national finals, culminating in a 75-foot rope climb up Mount Midoriyama in a time of 27.60 seconds. He edged out his training partner, Caleb Bergstrom, who finished second with a time of 28.90 seconds. Watch our exclusive video interview above.
“It could never be as emotional as the first time, but it was still awesome,” the Season 16 champ tells Gold Derby. “It was absolutely terrifying going third, and I had two people after me with Caleb getting up the rope. I assumed that since last season he didn’t get up the rope that he wouldn’t that time either. When I did hit the buzzer I was like, ‘Okay, I’m pretty sure I won.’ So I didn’t really keep track of what my time was. After Caleb went, I saw that he had a couple seconds left and I turned to the crowd and went, ‘Did I just lose?'”
Vance reveals the obstacle he fears the most is the Jumping Spider. “That’s what took me out in Season 14, sadly. That kept me from having the three-peat. My hips are not flexible at all because of the [cerebral palsy]. No matter how much I stretch, I’m going to be a little inconsistent on that obstacle. That’s definitely my least favorite.”
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One of the highlights of Season 16 was Vance’s head-to-head race with “Ninja Warrior” legend Flip Rodriguez on Stage 2. “It was really fun,” Vance says. “It was terrifying because I’ve seen him on the show since I started watching back in Season 7. He’s always been insanely fast, but also, he had only cleared Stage 2 once going into that race. I’m also a little inconsistent on Stage 2. The year before, I fell on my first race. I knew that we both could clear it and do it quickly, and luckily we both ended up clearing, but it came down to a matter of speed and I had to go faster than him to get it.”
Vance was hoping he could buy himself a Rolls-Royce with his prize money, but now admits, “I said that before I learned about taxes and the IRS.” Still, he was able to splurge a little bit. “I did get a very dumbed-down version of that. Rolls-Royce is owned by BMW and I got a nice BMW 4 Series convertible. That’s what I’m rockin’ with right now, but I put most of [the money] into investments.”
Vance also goes into detail about his training schedule, his move to Florida and how “awesome” it would be if Ninja Warrior became an Olympic sport. On Season 17, he will focus on his “early awareness” platform for cerebral palsy, which is personal for the athlete. “Early intervention can make a huge difference. When I was diagnosed it was at 17 months. The earlier you can catch it, it can make such a difference. The damage is already done, it’s neurological damage, but you can keep it from getting worse. I can never be more flexible, but the braces are to keep it from getting worse.”
