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 2016 - Powerlifting and Strongman Coverage

Written/Photo/Video:

Andrew Livelsberger

Background:
Arnold Fitness Expo 2016 coverage of clean and jerk, squat and 2nd round of Strongman Classic.

Impression:
The video will show you more than I can ever say.  I'll just repeat what I say every year.  These athletes are moving some serious weight and it is such the sight to behold.  They never disappoint.  Enjoy!

Arnold Sports Expo 2015 - Part 1

Written: Danielle and Andrew Livelsberger

Photography/Video:  Andrew Livelsberger

Enjoy the slideshow which showcases images and video coverage of Bodybuilding events, Strongman competitions and the Induction of some great athletes into the International Sports Hall of Fame.  This is the first part of a 3 part series that will cover the various aspects of the 4 day expo. 

Background:

Most people's first impression of the Arnold Fitness Expo is that it is only an International Federation of Body Builders event.  While it is true that the IFBB competitions are a large part of the Expo, there is so much more to it than that.  There are actually 50+ sports spotlighted during the 4 days.  We at VisualOhio hope to share with you some of the other events and sports present during the long weekend that make this one of the premiere fitness events in the world!

This edition will cover our experiences at the Expo in general as well as highlighting the body building preliminaries, the first round of the Arnold Strongman competition on the Expo Stage and the ceremony to celebrate the 2015 inductees into the International Sports Hall of Fame.

Impression:

Arnold Fitness Expo

The Convention Center was amassed with people and busy as it always has been.  All of the big players in the fitness, supplement, and gear industries are there as well as some relatively new vendors. There are lines everywhere, people looking for their next supplement or trying out some new and exciting gear or fitness method.

The Expo stage has some great events as well like the amateur bodybuilding, physique, and Strongman competitions as well as arm wrestling.

IFBB Amateurs

The IFBB amateurs were there and most are looking for their next big break into the professional ranks.  A win here could mean sponsorship and preparation to go pro. Whether amateur or pro, these athletes show the hard work and dedication of years of training. 

Strongman Competitions

With almost godly feets of strength, these powerful men from all over the world do things that most of us only dream about - lifting 1100 + pounds of timbers and running them up an incline in only seconds, or powering a 450 pound log from the floor to overhead not once, but multiple times!!  I find myself mesmerized by the sheer power these men are capable of harnessing and the explosive athleticism. Definitely a must see event!!

International Sports Hall of Fame

While a private ceremony, this is a very important place for athletes to not only be recognized for their achievement in sports but also for their success off their stage of fame and see them in a different light. These are the ones that go above and beyond the sport and give back to the community through charity and individual works. We as fans do not always get to know these people beyond what we see on TV or hear in the media. It was such a great experience to see them outside of that and for what they truly are - normal people that show how having a dream and working hard for it can pay off.   Each of the inductees were chosen not only based on their success and awards, but because each of them have used their success to give back and to inspire others.