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American Ninja Warrior Jessie Graff made her debut on The Titan Games during part one of the West Region competition. She faced challenger Kelly Valdez, a wildland firefighter who won two challenges to make it to Mount Olympus.
It was exciting to see Jessie take her Ninja Warrior and professional stunt skills to a new format. But Kelly was a strong contender who’d made the other challenges look simple.
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After a fast start, Jessie pulled ahead on the Iron Ascent, which played like something right off the Ninja Warrior course.
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Things started to change on the Log Lift. Jessie needed an extra moment to lock the log in. Kelly nailed it on her first try and charged ahead.
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Jessie wasn’t far behind, but when she jumped into the same Cage Crawl tunnel as Kelly, she didn’t have an opportunity to pass.
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The Ball and Chain was the big point of separation. Kelly immediately began the trip to the Titan Tomb. Jessie struggled to find leverage and traction.
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At one point, she strained so hard that she lost her footing completely. Jessie never gave up, but the Titan title went to Kelly.
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But like a true Ninja Warrior, Jessie had zero hard feelings about the loss and quickly congratulated Kelly.
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Jessie told us in an interview after the fact that she wants a rematch with the Ball and Chain. She’ll have a shot during the West Region finale in a few weeks if she can win her way back to Mount Olympus.