COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Every year, athletes flock to Columbus for the Arnold Classic Sports Festival.
As excitement builds and the 36th annual festival rolls around, rumors are swirling that Columbus may host the massive event in the future. Event organizers said the situation was hopeless.
“A lot of people around the world know Columbus because of the Arnold Classic and the Arnold Sports Festival,” said event director Brent Lalonde.
More than 20,000 athletes will be participating in this year's event. These athletes travel to different locations to compete. When some people first hear that the world's biggest sports festival, the Arnold, is coming to Columbus, they wonder why.
“It was like, oh, Columbus, Ohio. That's kind of boring,” said Tristan Killian, a member of the University of Oregon weightlifting team.
But athletes like Kilian said their feelings changed after coming to the city and learning about its history.
“I thought it was going to be much smaller, with literally nothing to do. And now that I'm here, I feel like this is a city. It's pretty big,” said another member of the University of Oregon weightlifting team. Karen Marumoto said.
The Arnold is in Columbus because of Arnold Schwarzenegger's friendship with former Worthington mayor and co-founder Jim Lorimer. The event became a community staple and led to an economic boom.
“Obviously, there's been a big impact, not just in downtown Columbus, with hotels and restaurants and taxis,” Lalonde said.
There is always the question of whether the Arnold will remain in Columbus. Organizers have officially signed a contract until 2025, but there is no contract yet for beyond that. But Lalonde said they're not going anywhere. He said Columbus is his hometown and Arnold wants it too.
“We've been here for 36 years. We'll be here again next year,” Lalonde said. “There has been no other event of this size or scope dedicated to this city for so long, and we look forward to being here in 2025.”
The expo opens on Friday. Lalonde said tickets for the 2025 event will go on sale in June.
