Kai Beckstrand’s American Ninja Warriorwin almost slipped away—he trailed brother Luke and rival Noah Meunier before pulling off a last-minute victory. Kai tells Collider that both races were a challenge — but for completely different reasons.
“Racing Luke, obviously, I knew exactly what he’s capable of, so that’s where the difference was. So I knew that as long as he put together a clean run,” Kai says, adding that he anticipated the race would be close, but “It ended up being a lot closer than I wanted it to be.” He recounts the exact moment when he fell behind and knew if he didn’t recover, Luke would have won. “I got hung up on the rings for a little bit, and he dismounted early,” he recalls. “I knew I was gonna be playing catch up for the rest of that race.”
Kai believes that if Luke was able to put together a fully clean run going into that last obstacle, especially, “I think he definitely had me. But where I made up the ground on that race against Luke was on that second-to-last obstacle, the kickboards,” he says. “I was able to just jump on and kick right away and get off on that second swing where he and a couple of other athletes had to take that one or two kicks to get that board all the way up.”
Kai Beckstrand Wins ‘American Ninja Warrior,’ but Noah Meunier Nearly Took It
While Luke pushed Kai, Noah could have stolen the win. Kai admits the final race against Noah was the most intense, given the weight of the moment. “The race against Noah had a lot of weight to it, especially considering it was the final race,” the 19-year-old says. “And I know my own limits, but I also know that Noah is one of those top competitors who kind of does whatever needs to be done in the moment. And so, leading up to it, I know he hadn’t pushed as hard as he was capable of doing.” Kai recalls feeling that sense of mystery at the beginning of the race. “What I was thinking in the back of my mind was, I don’t know what he’s capable of doing on this course, ’cause I don’t think he showed it yet.”
While Kai retains the American Ninja Warrior Season 17 title, he may have to defend it next time against Luke. “I’ve talked to him about it, and he said maybe it just wasn’t his year,” Kai says about Luke’s loss this year. “He thinks he’s coming back to take the title this coming year, and the scary thing about it is I think he’s definitely got a chance for it.”
Kai continues: “So he’s not all talk, he’s definitely gonna prove it to the rest of the world. And I know what he is capable of, and I knew he was good last year, but he’s a whole different animal this year.”
American Ninja Warrior is currently streaming on Peacock.
