The Challenge throws a variety of obstacles at competitors that test their mental and physical abilities.
There have been more than a few instances where cast members opted to quit rather than go through with a daily event or elimination due to their intensity or other circumstances.
Viewers saw that during the All Stars spinoff seasons several times, including that iconic moment with Arissa Hill telling off her castmates before exiting the elimination, as well as Tina Barta letting her opponent Melinda Collins win their matchup.
In The Challenge: World Championship, Kiki Morris arrived to the show after winning her spinoff, The Challenge: Australia.
However, she said she nearly took herself out of the game before the season really got started on the World Championship spinoff show.
This report will contain spoilers from Paramount Plus’ The Challenge: World Championship.
Kiki Morris reveals she almost removed herself from World Championship
During a recent appearance on the Official Challenge Podcast, Kiki and her World Championship teammate, Legend Darrell Taylor, joined host Devyn Simone to discuss their time on the spinoff.
At one point, Kiki said she almost took herself out of the game during the first episode of the season.
In the premiere episode, the global MVPs were the first to arrive at the game before learning that MTV Legends would also participate. Before the Legends had any competition, the MVPs had to show their capabilities in an opening qualifier.
Argentina’s Claudia Albertario finished in last place, putting her into the first elimination. The rest of the MVPs then voted to determine two potential opponents, with Kaz Crossley and Kiki Morris the competitors getting the most votes.
Kiki ended up going into the elimination against Claudia, but she confessed during the podcast episode that she almost disqualified herself from the event.
“When I found out it was a Pole Wrestle and a physical kind of competition, I have really bad anxiety. I came from a background of domestic violence – that kind of physical closeness of that challenge was making me feel a bit anxious,” she revealed, adding, “I had PTSD still carrying from a previous relationship that was quite physical, and I didn’t know if I was gonna be able to do it.”
When asked how she was able to go through with it, Kiki shared that one of the producers she grew close with during The Challenge: Australia sat down with her to talk things over.
“This is an opportunity for you to prove to yourself that you’re not gonna let what someone did to you in your past define who you’re gonna be in your future and to just push through and do it,” she said the producer told her.
She ultimately went through with the elimination and defeated Claudia to send her home. That also showed Kiki’s strength as a competitor.
Kiki’s revealed her goal with The Challenge: World Championship
From the start of The Challenge: World Championship, some countries had team unity, while others clearly did not. Based on Kiki’s account, her Australian castmate Emily Seebohn was “gunning” for her from the beginning of the season.
That was due to Kiki eliminating Emily from The Challenge: Australia, and Kiki felt Emily was still holding a grudge against her when they arrived to the World Championship. However, Kiki has been able to get past that through most of the season as she works alongside four-time champion Darrell.
Kiki also has a strong motivation to continue to perform well during the spinoff season, as she revealed in Episode 9.
Early in the episode, she touched upon having a rough childhood and wanting to prove herself. She also said she wanted to deliver an inspirational message to others with her performance in the competition.
“When I first started the Australian Challenge, I thought that I just wanted to be there to prove to everyone that I’m not just some bubbly bimbo,” she said in an Episode 9 confessional.
“After going through that experience, I realized how much more the win meant for me. I have gone through a pretty troubled childhood. I’ve lived through domestic violence,” Kiki shared.
“It really opened my eyes to just how much I want to prove to all the young women out there. If they wanna do something, the only person that needs to give them permission for it is themselves,” she said.
The Challenge: World Championship episodes arrive Wednesdays on Paramount Plus.
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