Arnold Sports Festival 2024: Dates, Event Schedule and More for Arnold Classic

The 2024 Arnold Sports Festival kicks off this Thursday, and Arnold Schwarzenegger's annual celebration of fitness and sporting competition promises to be as big as ever. The weekend-long extravaganza will, of course, be highlighted by one of bodybuilding's marquee events, the Arnold Classic.

Though The Olympia remains the top prize in bodybuilding, the Classic has become a prestigious International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) competition in its own right. However, it's far from the only event that will take place in Columbus this weekend.

From weightlifting and martial arts events to dance, gymnastics and even foosball, the Arnold Sports Festival offers a little something for every sporting enthusiast.

This year's festival will run from February 29 through March 3 and will involve multiple locations, including the Columbus Convention Center, the Hilton Columbus Downtown, the Battelle Grande, The Columbus Athenaeum and the Ohio Expo Center.

Arnold Sports Festival 2024, Schedule of Key Events

Thursday, February 29

Arnold Amateur 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. ET

USA Weightlifting 8 a.m. - 10 p.m. ET

IFBB Pro League Meet and Greet 7 p.m. - 9 p.m. ET

Friday, March 1

Arnold Amateur 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. ET

USA Powerlifting 8a.m. - 7 p.m. ET

Foosball 8 a.m. - 11 p.m. ET

Gymnastics 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. ET

Arnold Expo 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET

Medieval Fighting 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET

Muay Thai 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET

Classic Physique Prejudging 12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. ET

Fitness International Prejudging 12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. ET

Arnold Strongman Classic 1 p.m. - 6 p.m. ET

Wellness International Finals 7 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. ET

Fitness international Finals 7 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. ET

Arnold Classic Prejudging 7p.m. - 9:30 p.m. ET

Saturday, March 2

Youth DanceSport 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. ET

Gymnastics 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. ET

Cheerleading and Dance 8 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET

Arnold Expo 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET

Pro Wheelchair Prejudging and Finals 10 a.m. - 11 a.m. ET

Amateur Strongman 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET

MAS Wrestling 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET

Arnold Men's Physique Prejudging 11 a.m. - 12 p.m. ET

Arnold Strongman Classic 12 p.m. - 5 p.m. ET

Arnold Strongwoman Classic 12 p.m. - 5 p.m. ET

Angel Fashion Show 12:15 p.m. - 1 p.m. ET

Arnold Men's Physique Finals 7 p.m. - 10 p.m. ET

Arnold Classic Finals 7 p.m. - 10 p.m. ET

Sunday, March 3

Youth DanceSport 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. ET

Gymnastics 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. ET

Cheerleading and Dance 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. ET

Grappling 10 a.m. - 4 p;m. ET

5K Pump & Run 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. ET

Arnold Showcase 9:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. ET

Arnold Expo 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. ET

Amateur Strongman Finals 2 p.m. - 4 p.m. ET

*Complete schedule of events can be found at ArnoldSports.com

Arnold Classic Preview

As always, the Arnold Classic will feature several of the top IFBB pros, including reigning champion Samson Dauda. Dauda's top competition may come from 2022 Mr. Olympia—and 2023 Olympia runner-up—Hadi Choopan.

Choopan has never competed at the Arnold Classic before, but he did finish five spots ahead of Dauda at the 2022 Olympia and a spot ahead of him at the 2023 Olympia. Derek Lunsford won the latter event but won't be competing in Columbus this weekend.

Other top contenders include Antoine Vaillant, Marcello De Angelis, James Hollingshead and Rafael Brandao.

Brandao was largely inactive in 2023 and will look to unveil a new and improved physique in Columbus this weekend.

"I feel like I'm a different guy. I know I'm bigger, leaner, drier, harder," Brandao said, per Greg Patuto of Generation Iron. "You know, also, yeah I think this year that I took off, I'm going to bring a lot of change to the stage."

Whoever leaves the stage as the winner will take home quite the prize. Last year, the Arnold Classic increased the first-prize payout from $200,000 to $300,000. While that's still less than the Mr. Olympia receives, it's more than enough to ensure that the top competitors are at the top of their game.

We'll find out who the winner will be on Saturday night, and fans who can't attend in person can follow the action via the Arnold Sports Festival live stream.

Fans who do converge on Columbus this weekend will have a plethora of events to enjoy both before and after the Arnold Classic itself.