The words “Arnold Schwartzenager” and “muscle and brawn” go hand in hand.

 

This weekend, there will plenty of muscle and brawn at the 12th annual Arnold Weightlifting Championships, held in Columbus, Ohio as part of the Arnold Sports Festival.

 

The Arnold sports Festival is the worlds largest sports festival bringing in over 175,000 fans, 18,000 athletes, for over 50 sports. The Arnold Weightlifting Championships is a one-of-a-kind event boasting some of the biggest names in weightlifting who will be competing to qualify for the upcoming Pan American Games held later this year.

 

FloElite will be in Ohio covering all the action.

 

Event organizer Drew Dillon reflected on the growth of the sport of weightlifting, since the Festival’s beginning in 2003, and gave FloElite a little sneak preview of the muscle and brawn coming Friday March 6-Sunday March 8. 

 

What are the things “to watch” at this year’s Championships?

This year has some huge names to look out for in the sport of weightlifting. A true highlight will be current World Champion and World Record holder Tatiana Kashirina from Russia who will be lifting more weight then most of the men in the competition. However, there will be a number of elite men who will be pushing well past her numbers and battling it out for an opportunity to represent Team USA in the Pan American Championships! Of these men, are four 94 kilo men who represent the battle of the 94's! Olympian Kendrick Farris, Olympian Norik Vardanian, Jared Fleming, and Colin Burns will meet for the first time since nationals where Colin upset two Olympians to take gold!

 

What exactly will this competition entail?

 

The Arnold Championship is an opportunity for athletes to qualify to represent the USA. There are only 3 Men’s and 2 Women qualifying spots available for the athletes this year. So 30 of the best men in the US will be fighting for 3 spots. 15 of the best women in the US will be fighting for 2 spots. The athletes who lift the most in relationship to the NCS 5 year averages will be ranked as the best men and women in the country to be selected.

 

What sets it apart as a competition?

Since its inception, the weightlifting championships, and its partners, have awarded nearly $200,000 to the competition’s top finishers in the form of cash, prizes, and scholarships.

 

Who are names/fames who have made history here in the past?

Dimitry Kolkov competed back in 2004 and 2005 only to tell Russian media almost 10 years later that it was one of the best meets he has participated and wished that Russia had one.

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