Arnold Sports Festival 2019 - Armlifting - Rolling Thunder Event

Written by Dani and Andrew Livelsberger

Photography by Andrew Livelsberger

Julia Williams

Background:
A new event for this year, armlifting is a sport where grip strength is paramount.  Athletes need to lift increasingly heavier weights, but the difficulty is ramped up from a traditional weight or power lifting event due to the larger sizes of the grippable areas.

The images in this thread are from the event names Rolling Thunder.  The athlete must lift the weight straight up from the handle and be standing straight up to the judges satisfaction.

The event was hosted by TheGripGuys.

Autumn Cote
40 kilos (88 lbs)

Impression:
Armlifting is very new to me.    Much like years ago, outside of the Arnold Sports Festival, I knew nothing of MAS Wrestling.  It being listed on the roster as a new event for this year, I had to do my research.  I checked it out on YouTube and I knew that it was something we should experience first hand.

I knew nothing at all of it, had no idea that it even existed.  So, we made out way to the Consourse stage to cover it.

We know that lifting heavy weights is a task in and of itself.  With armlifting, the difficulty is increased by having the gripping handle much larger in diameter than you would usually find.  This requires the participants to develop their grip strength in order to even be able to lift the weight from the ground.

These are not trivial weights either.  In the first few lifts, the athletes were putting up 40-60 kilos (88-132 lbs) in weight.

Having discovered this great sport, we will definitely have to cover it more in the future.  If you've never heard of armlifting before, give it a try and check it out for yourself.

Arnold Fitness Expo 2019 - Guns and Hoses - One Shot!

Written/Photography by Andrew Livelsberger

Location:  Voinovich Center, Ohio State Fairgrounds

At the end of the third round, bloodied but still on his feet, this Guns and Hoses competitor showed strength and tenacity in all three rounds of his fight.

The annual Guns and Hoses boxing exhibition is one of the highlights of the Arnold Fitness Expo.  This year, it was held in the Voinovich Center at the Ohio State Fairgrounds.

There are still 3 full days of Expo, competitions and events.  Don't miss out on this world class sporting festival.

Arnold Sports Festival 2018 Recap

We want to welcome back our Arnold Sports Festival Columbus readers as well as any new readers!
You might be wondering why the Arnold articles now?

We wanted to give you a little recap of 2018 and start getting you pumped and excited about all that is going to go on in 2019!

The team is currently looking over the events for this year and building out our schedule of coverage.
We'll update you on anything new that is coming in a future post.

Guns and Hoses Amateur Boxing

This event was held at the Hollywood Casino event area.  Police and firefighters compete in 3 round boxing matches.

Body Painting Competition

2018 was the first official body painting competition at the Arnold Columbus.   Great artists and models came together to showcase their skills.

 

Art At The Arnold

For many years, art has been a feature at the Arnold.   2018 saw the introduction of the body painting category, other more traditional art forms continue to be made and displayed.  2018 saw the artists move to a more spacious area in the newer section of the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
New location, same great art.

Yoga

Yoga is also represented at the Arnold.  At this session, sensory deprivation is used to help block out the outside influences of the world and get the practitioners focused.

Pole Dancing

Professional pole dancing is a must see event.  We stop by every year to see the amateurs and professionals display their awesomely choreographed and athletic routines.

Scottish Highland Games

Caber tossing and rock throwing were on display in the Expo.

Toughman Competition

New for 2018, the toughman boxing was exciting and entertaining.  We are hoping that this event returns in 2019.
These fighters left everything in the octagon.

Wheelchair Bodybuilding

After we saw this event for the first time a few years ago, this has been a must see every year.  Showcasing the strong will of the human spirit.  These bodybuilders overcome some of the biggest adversities and prove that you can be whatever you set your mind to!

Pickleball

we knew very little about this sport, but it is easy to understand once you watch for a little while.  This fast paced sport is great to watch.  Definitely check it out!   This event is normally at the fair grounds along with gymnastics, cheerleading and the kids expo.

Professional Wrestling

Yes, there is that as well!  We stumbled across this high energy match whilst making our way through the kids expo.   It was so good, we stopped to get some coverage of NOW - New Ohio Wrestling!

There are so many competitions at the Arnold every year, we have a tough time trying to figure out what to cover!  There is something for everyone at the Arnold, so make sure to look over the 4 days of events and find your favorite!  Or better yet, find something you've never seen or heard of before and give that a go.

Here is a link to the 2019 schedule of events.
Official ArnoldSportFestival Website - SCHEDULE 2019

Remember, if you can't make it, checkout our coverage February 28 through March 3!

Arnold Sport Festival World Strongest Man 2018 - Hafthor Bjornsonn

Hafthor Bjornsson

Hafthor Bjornsson, a.k.a. "The Mountain" secured an Arnold Worlds Strongest Man title in 2018

Securing his victory with strong performances in all events, but most notably are the 1041 pound world record breaking deadlift and a first place in the weight over bar event 95 pounds.

Weight over bar bags.  Extra heavy bags needed to be added in 2018.

Hafthor Bjornsson with his 95lb bag throw over the bar

Brian Shaw, a perennial favorite did not seem like himself.  His explosiveness seemed a little lacking.   This could possibly have been from fatigue due to hardships during his travels to Columbus.  Regardless, he was still pushing hard and was constantly close to the top in most events.

Brian Shaw

We also want to express our utmost respect to Mateusz Kieliskowski who lifted the 410 lb rock 4 times.   He completely got the crowd going wild with his show of strength.  Most other competitors managed to only get the rock off the ground, but Kieliskowski put on a clinic by powering through and scoring 4 complete lifts.

Mateusz Kieliskowski

The Arnold Strongman competitions are always crowd favorites and for good reason.  These athletes will astonish and amaze you with what they can do.  Definitely check out the competition this year!

Arnold Classic 2018 IFBB Pro Champion- William Bonac

Welcome to a new format!

We are trying something new and here we have a YouTube link as well as a Podcast!

Visual Ohio Voice is hosted by Danielle and Andrew Livelsberger.  You get to listen to our thoughts on the events we cover.

This premiere episode, we cover the Arnold Classic 2018 IFBB competitors and top 3 placers, William Bonac, Dexter Jackson and Cedric McMillan.


Youtube:

Podbean Podcast:

Arnold Sports Festival Columbus Celebrating 30 Years

Written/Photography by

Andrew Livelsberger

Background:
Celebrating 30 years of sports excellence, the Arnold Sports Festival returns to Columbus, OH March 1-4, 2018.   75 sports will be represented and new sports/exhibits will be introduced.


Impression:
You know we here at VisualOhio love the Arnold Sports Festival.  We have been attending the event long before we covered it professionally.  We've seen the event grow and change over time, just as we've seen different sports and athletes change over time.

Arnold Schwarzenegger has created a tradition, a welcoming atmosphere for the world of sports.  This annual, world wide event is something to behold.  A mecca of sorts, that we feel everyone should attend at least once in their life, if for no other reason to see the world in a different way.  A way that shows that varying sports and athletes from all kinds of backgrounds have a place.

Here is a sampling of some of our favorite images from over the years.  Please enjoy them and know that we love what we do and we love bringing you coverage of the event every year.

The 30th year will bring even more sports, hitting the 75 mark - including axe throwing and body painting being added this year.