American Ninja Warrior (sometimes abbreviated as ANW) is an American sports entertainment competition that is a spin - off of the Japanese television series Sasuke. It features hundreds of competitors attempting to complete a series of obstacle courses of increasing difficulty, trying to make it to the national finals on the Las Vegas Strip, in hopes of becoming an "American Ninja Warrior ''. To date only two competitors, rock - climbers Isaac Caldiero and Geoff Britten, have finished the course and achieved "Total Victory ''. Caldiero is the only competitor to win the cash prize. The series premiered on December 12, 2009 on the now - defunct cable channel G4 and now airs on NBC with encore episodes airing on USA Network and NBCSN.
when is american ninja warrior filmed in las vegas
the national finals