2014 Arnold Classic Press Release - The Arnold Sports Festival

The 2014 edition of the Arnold Classic competition will feature the men's 212 bodybuilding division for the first time. This new bodybuilding division in effect replaces the Ms. International competition.

All the other pro divisions, including men's bodybuilding, fitness, figure and bikini will be featured, as they have in years prior. In fact there will be three additional pro divisions in 2014 - the 212 Class and Men's and Women's Physique have also being added to the event.

The Arnold Classic 212 will be present for the first time the IFBB Pro League stars such as defending Mr. Olympia 212 Showdown champion James "Flex" Lewis mixing it up with the other top competitors. David Henry, Kevin English and Jose Raymond are expected to compete. The Arnold Classic 212 will be held on Friday, Feb. 28, with prejudging at the Greater Columbus Convention Center and finals at Veterans Memorial.

Lewis is one of the most impressive bodybuilders to come up the ranks in quite some time. He packs plenty of muscle on his 212-pound frame, with excellent biceps, and overall arm development, not to mention some of the best leg development on the pro scene.

The winner of the contest will earn a qualification for the 50th annual Mr. Olympia competition next September, while the 2nd to fifth place positions will earn points in the 2014 Mr. Olympia Qualification Series. Of course, Flex Lewis is already qualified for the Olympia, but there is a lot on the line in terms of earning a top placing at the second biggest contest of the year. Plus becoming the first ever Arnold 212 Champion.

The 3 day 2014 Arnold Fitness EXPO will again feature 700 booths of the latest in bodybuilding, sports equipment, apparel and nutrition and a main Expo stage that hosts unique, non-stop competitions and entertainment. The event will feature 18,000 athletes competing in 50 sports and events and 175,000 attendees over four days. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jim Lorimer have co-produced the Arnold Sports Festival for 26 years, starting out with the Arnold in 1989 at the Veterans.

Arnold and Jim Lorimer will grace the Veterans Memorial stage in Columbus, Ohio one last time at the Arnold Sports Festival, Thursday February 27 - Sunday March 2. By this I mean that it will be the final Arnold competition held at the Veterans after 26 magnificent years of the Arnold. The Veterans is being torn down and rebuilt without an auditorium.

It will be a wonderful if not slightly sad farewell to the Vets this time, and no doubt a sentimental weekend. On the Saturday night at the end of the pro shows, the curtain comes down for the last time. In fact Arnold first stood on the Veterans Memorial stage almost 44 years ago when he won the 1970 Mr. World.

In future the Friday and Saturday night finals will be held at the Battelle Grand (a large and modern multi-purpose area) at the Greater Columbus Convention center, as from 2015.

Wayne from GMV will be covering the Arnold at this historic final time at the Veterans Memorial Hall, and of course he will also be shooting at the Expo.

You can take a look back at last year's DVDs from the 2013 Arnold Sports Festival. See below.

2013 Arnold Classic – Celebrating 25 Years   The 25th Anniversary Arnold Classic was held at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Columbus, Ohio on March 1st & 2nd, 2013. Congratulations to the winner Dexter Jackson who also won the Arnold Classic in 2005, 2006 and 2008. This DVD presents the COMPLETE PREJUDGING with all of the compulsory poses and callouts, plus the complete FINALS and the Final Event of the Pro Strongman, the Circus DB Lift. See this complete Circus Lift contest, along with the winner's award by Arnold to Vytautas Lalas of Lithuania. GMV-851DVD | $39.95

2013 Arnold Classic - The Women   This year we are offering a massive DVD of over FOUR HOURS from the Prejudging and Finals of the Arnold Classic Pro Women's Events. This disc contains the complete coverage of all rounds from the 4 WOMEN'S CONTESTS, plus awards presentations from each of these contests, featuring the IFBB’s top professional female athletes. The 4 International winners were: Ms. International: Iris Kyle Fitness International: Tanji Johnson Figure International: Candice Keene Bikini International: India Paulino. GMV-853DVD | $39.95

2013 Arnold Strongman Classic   Enjoy the complete coverage of this incredible display of skill and strength from Days 1 and 2. This DVD covers every moment of each of the 5 events. You will see the world’s greatest Strongmen in action as they pit their skills against each other in these unique challenges of strength, power, stamina and determination. The events are designed to test brute strength and determine which competitor is the strongest man! New world records were set, and the exciting final event, the Circus Dumbbell Lift, was held on the Veterans stage in front of thousands of fans. The first time winner, VYTAUTAS LALAS of Lithuania was presented his award by Arnold Schwarzenegger. GMV-852DVD | $39.95

2013 Arnold Classic Amateur Men   This massive contest DVD of over 4 hours has something for everyone. There are world class athletes in every category from lighter style Men's Physique through to the super heavyweight Men's Bodybuilding stars. This is an international event with the top amateur guys from around the world. See all of the lineups, key comparisons and callouts plus posing by the top guys, and all awards and posedowns. GMV-854DVD | $39.95

2013 Arnold Classic Amateur Women   This massive contest DVD of almost 4 hours presents every current class in IFBB women’s competition. There are world class female athletes competing in the various categories. This is an outstanding international event with the top amateur women in the world. See all of the lineups, key comparisons and callouts plus posing by the top women, and all awards and posedowns. A stand-out and overall Women's Bodybuilding winner was Branka Njegovec (Croatia). GMV-855DVD | $39.95