Kacy Catanzaro

Kacy Catanzaro

Kacy Catanzaro at a Volleyball event
Born Kacy Esther Catanzaro[1]
(1990-01-14) January 14, 1990
Glen Ridge, New Jersey, United States
Height 5 ft 0 in (1.52 m)
Weight 100 lb (45 kg)

Kacy Esther Catanzaro (born January 14, 1990)[2][3] nicknamed The Mighty Kacy, is an American gymnast noted for being the first woman to qualify for the finals of the television sports challenge American Ninja Warrior.

Born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, Catanzaro grew up and attended high school in nearby Belleville and is of Italian descent.[2][4][5] She is a relatively small woman, standing only 4 feet 11 inches (150 cm) tall and weighing only 90 pounds (41 kg). She began doing gymnastics at age 5. She attended Towson University in Towson, Maryland from 2009 until 2012, studying early childhood education on an athletic scholarship.[2][3][6] She competed in gymnastics for Towson in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association and was named the Southeast Regional Gymnast of the Year in 2012.[7] She was also named the 2012 Eastern College Athletic Conference Gymnast of the Year and was the top-ranked competitor in that conference for that year.[8] She has worked for Alpha Warrior, an obstacle-course gym in San Antonio, Texas, since February 2013.[3]

Catanzaro spent two years training for American Ninja Warrior alongside her boyfriend and co-competitor Brent Steffensen.[9] She did not complete the qualifying course in Venice, California but was a wildcard at the 2013 finals.[10]

In 2014, Catanzaro became the first woman to complete the qualifying course of American Ninja Warrior, making it up the warped wall on her second try at 5:26.18 at the Dallas qualifiers, ranking her 21 out of 30; this also makes her the first woman to make it up the warped wall in competition. On July 14, 2014, Catanzaro competed in the Dallas finals of American Ninja Warrior. She was the first woman ever to complete the course (and the first woman to attempt it), qualifying for the national finals in Las Vegas with a time of 8 minutes, 59 seconds.[11][12] Host Akbar Gbaja-Biamila remarked "I've seen greatness during my NFL career...And I've been in awe of people, but I am really in awe of Kacy".[13] Her achievement made her a social media phenomenon, with her run being viewed over 100 million times; supporters on Twitter coined the hashtag #MightyKacy.[10][14] Kacy Catanzaro failed to complete the 1st round of the finals, in Las Vegas. She fell attempting the Jumping Spider. Catanzaro appeared in a 2014 commercial for Fairfield Inns.

In the 2015 Houston Qualifying round Catanzaro failed to complete the course after falling on the cargo crossing. She failed Stage 1 of The Finals on September 7.

References

  1. ↑ https://twitter.com/KacyCatanzaro/status/491814181281083393
  2. 1 2 3 Zachary Stieber (16 July 2014). "Kacy Catanzaro American Ninja Warrior". Epoch Times.
  3. 1 2 3 Dan Reilly (17 July 2014). "14 things #MightyKacy told us after her huge victory on American Ninja Warrior". Esquire.
  4. ↑ Allison Takeda (16 July 2014). "Kacy Catanzaro owns American Ninja Warrior, is first female finalist". US Magazine.
  5. ↑ "14 Things #MightyKacy Told Us After Her Huge Victory on American Ninja Warrior". Esquire. Esquire. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  6. ↑ "Kacy Catanzaro sets the bar high on American Ninja Warrior". CBS Baltimore. 15 July 2014.
  7. ↑ Kyle Newport (July 15, 2014). "Former NCAA gymnast becomes 1st woman to finish 'American Ninja Warrior' course". Bleacher Report.
  8. ↑ "Catanzaro named as NCAA Regional Gymnast of the Year". Towson Tigers. 7 April 2012.
  9. ↑ Alex Heigl (17 July 2014). "Kacy Catanzaro becomes first woman to complete American Ninja Warrior course". People.
  10. 1 2 Nina Mandell (18 July 2014). "American Ninja Warrior phenom Kacy Catanzaro: 'I had no idea so many people would care so much'". USA Today.
  11. ↑ Avery Thompson (17 July 2014). "'American Ninja Warrior': Kacy Catanzaro is first woman to finish course". Hollywood Life.
  12. ↑ Sophia Rosenbaum (16 July 2014). "First woman advances to 'American Ninja Warrior' finals".
  13. ↑ Bruna Nessif (16 July 2014). "Gymnast Kacy Catanzaro completing the American Ninja Warrior course is the most exciting thing you'll watch all day". E! Online.
  14. ↑ David Young (16 July 2014). "The Mighty Kacy strikes back on American Ninja Warrior". SportsGrid.
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