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American Ninja Warrior
Season 5
NBC 8p ET Mon

Recaps by Chico Alexander, GSNN

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This... is American Ninja Warrior: USA vs. Japan.

History lesson... thousands have attempted the course, but only three have finished it: Kazuhiko Akiyama, Makoto Nagano, and - the only person to do it TWICE - Yuuji Urushihara. Urushihara now leads a team of five into Las Vegas to take on the US course. They will face a team of five Americans every bit as strong, as fast, and as agile as they are.

LAS VEGAS
Mt. Midoriyama

Each member of each team will face off against an opposing member in head-to-head matches. The person to go the furthest the fastest in each match will win the match. Each stage is a best-of-three, and as the difficulty rises, so does the point value.

- Stage 1: 1 point
- Stage 2: 2 points
- Stage 3: 3 points
- Stage 4: a tiebreaker if the score is tied.

STAGE 1:

- TIMBERS: Eight slanted logs
- GIANT CYCLE: Vault from the tramp to the circle, then time your leap to the landing platform
- ROPE GLIDER: Ride down a cable to a floating mat.
- JUMPING SPIDER: Tramp jump plus spider climb.
- HALFPIPE ATTACK: Up the wall, then ride the rope to...
- WARPED WALL
- SPINNING BRIDGE: Spinning balls, four of them.
- FINAL CLIMB up the cargo net.

- Match 1: Arnold vs. Yamamoto
McGRATH: 1:16.67
YAMAMOTO: TIME - Warped Wall (USA leads, 1-0)

- Match 2:  Kasemir vs. Kanno
KANNO: 1:25.43
KASEMIR: 1:24.80 (USA leads, 2-0)

- Match 3: Steffensen vs. Asa
STEFFENSEN: 1:14.53* (*new Stage 1 record)
ASA: FAIL - Giant Cycle (USA wins 3-0)

At the end of Stage 1, the USA leads, 1 point to nil.

Waiting for our players in Stage 2...

- HANG SLIDER: grab a handle and safely land on the platform below without hitting the water.
- DOUBLE SALMON LADDER: traverse up the ladder... and then hop onto the second.
- UNSTABLE BRIDGE: two planks, the last one rockier than the first.
- BALANCE TANK: stay upright as you roll 16 feet down.
- METAL SPIN: swing around the metal and then...
- WALL LIFT: three walls - 66, 88, and 110 pounds.

- Match 1: Matachi vs. Arnold
MATACHI: FAIL - Double Salmon Ladder
ARNOLD: 1:14.63 (USA leads, 1-0)

- Match 2: Urushihara vs. Rosen
ROSEN: FAIL - Metal Spin
URUSHIHARA: FAIL - Double Salmon Ladder (USA leads, 2-0)

- Match 3: Asa vs. McGrath
ASA: FAIL - Double Salmon Ladder
McGRATH: 1:15 (USA wins, 3-0)

With James' run, the USA is up 3 points to zero. If Team Japan is to make a move, it has to be in... 

... STAGE 3. This is the ultimate test of upper body strength. There are eight obstacles, each one more punishing than the next.

- ROULETTE CYLINDER: Guide the cylinder by traversing the wheel's spokes.
- DOORKNOB GRASPER: Swing around wall-mounted doorknobs.
- FLOATING BOARDS: Four boards, each one suspended by ropes with ZERO ledge to take hold
- ULTIMATE CLIFFHANGER: Each ledge remains at barely an inch thick.
- BUNGEE ROPE CLIMB: Three ropes of varying length
- HANG CLIMB: Inverted rock climbing wall
- SPIDER FLIP: Hang crawl to the ledge, jump, then hang crawl down.
- FLYING BAR: A vertical version of the Salmon Ladder

It's the ultimate test of will to win. There is NO time limit. All you have to do is finish. If you don't, the furthest will win the match.

Of the 3000 people to EVER compete on Sasuke or ANW, only 22 have challenged Stage 3.

- Match 1: Matachi vs. Arnold (Matachi has cleared once to Arnold's zero)
MATACHI: FAIL - Flying Bar
ARNOLD: FAIL - Flying Bar
This one is going to come to time.... Winner: Ryo (Japan leads 1-0)

- Match 2: McGrath vs. Urushihara (Urushihara has cleared stage 3 three times; James has yet to do it once)
McGRATH: FAIL - Floating Boards
URUSHIHARA: FAIL - Floating Boards
Another one to go to time... Winner: James (Tied at 1)

- Match 3: Steffensen vs. Yamamoto (again, Yamamoto has cleared three times in the 28 times he has competed. Stefffensen.... not a one).
YAMAMOTO: FAIL - Floating Boards
STEFFENSEN: FAIL - Hang Climb (USA leads, 2-1)

It all comes down to this. A Japan win ties it up, a US win sews it up.

- Match 4: Kanno vs. Kasemir (Kasemir has never cleared the Ultimate Cliffhanger. Kanno has cleared it twice)
KASEMIR: FAIL - Flying Bar
KANNO: FAIL - Ultimate Cliffhanger (USA wins, 3-1)

LEADERBOARD

With that win, Team USA makes it a clean sweep of the obstacles in this, the first World Championship. Meanwhile, all 10 of our athletes congratulate each other on a job well done. No doubt we have not seen the last of anyone of them, especially the underdogs of Team USA.

But the question still remains... does ANYONE have what it takes to climb to the top of the mountain and claim total victory? We'll have to wait until the summer to find out. In the meantime, the best America has to offer continue to get better in search of that brass ring.  With more tournaments ahead in the future, stay with us for... MORE amazing athletes... MORE crazy competitors... MORE outrageous obstacles... MORE heartbreaking falls... AND MORE AMERICAN NINJA WARRIOR!

For more information on the contestants, including never-before-seen footage, or to watch this episode in its entirety, go to nbc.com/anw