On Dec. 17, 2021, the Arnold Sports Festival officially announced the athletes that will be competing in the 2022 Arnold Classic, which will be held on the weekend of Mar. 3-6, 2022 at the Battelle Grand Ballroom of the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, OH.
The Arnold Classic is considered the second biggest contest in bodybuilding. The champions that are crowned in Columbus will be considered the top contenders for the 2022 Olympia, which will be held the weekend of Dec. 16-18, 2022 in Las Vegas, NV.
The Arnold Classic Physique, Fitness International, and Figure International Finals will be held along with prejudging of the Men’s Open on Friday, March 4. The Arnold Classic, Men’s Physique, Bikini International, and Wellness International finals will be held on Saturday, March 5. The times for finals of the Wellness and Wheelchair divisions weren’t announced as of this writing. The prize money for all divisions is expected to be announced at a later date.
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Arnold Classic
The main event of the weekend is the 34th edition of the Arnold Classic. One of bodybuilding’s most prestigious titles will be contested by 13 men from six countries. Among them will be 2019 Mr. Olympia and Arnold Classic winner Brandon Curry, two-time Arnold Classic Champion William Bonac, and 2017 winner Cedric McMillan.
Bonac and McMillan were supposed to compete in the 2020 contest but were unable to — Bonac had traveling issues while McMillan was recovering from injuries. There are also contenders that are considered future stars, such as Brett Wilkin and Samson Dauda.
There are major changes to this year’s competition. For the first time, the men’s Open will be held across two evenings. The prejudging will be held on Friday night, March 4, 2022, and the finals will be held on Saturday night, March 5. This is similar to the format that is used at Mr. Olympia. This new format will change the way that the competitors plan their strategies because they have to maintain their condition over the course of two days instead of one.
There are nine IFBB Pro League divisions holding contests at the Arnold Classic this year — five men’s divisions and four women’s lineups. In total, 83 athletes from 18 countries around the world will gather and posedown for the opportunity to stand alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger as champion. The full lineup for the Men’s Open is below.
Men’s Open
- William Bonac (Netherlands)
- Rafael Brandao* (Brazil)
- Maxx Charles (USA)
- Brandon Curry (USA)
- Samson Dauda (United Kingdom)
- Nathan De Asha (United Kingdom)
- Regan Grimes (Canada)
- Steve Kuclo (USA)
- Cedric McMillan (USA)
- Fabio Giga Rezende (Brasil)
- Justin Rodriguez (USA)
- Mohamed Shaaban (Egypt)
- Brett Wilkin (USA)
- Akim Williams (USA)
*Brandao withdrew from the Arnold Classic. A replacement has not yet been announced.
Classic Physique
The Classic Physique division will feature nine athletes competing from five nations. The headliners will be 2021 winner Terrence Ruffin and two-time Olympia champion Breon Ansley. They will be joined by 2021 Olympia top five finishers Urs Kalecinski and Ramon Rocha Queiroz.
- Breon Ansley (USA)
- Michael Daboul (United Kingdom)
- Urs Kalecinski (Germany)
- Peter Molnar (Hungary)
- Terrence Ruffin (USA)
- Ramon Rocha Queiroz (Brasil)
- Darwin Uribe (USA)
- Lenny Wicks (USA)
- Divine Wilson (USA)
Men’s Physique
The goal of the competitors in the Men’s Physique show is to emerge as the top contender for Brandon Hendrickson’s Olympia title, which he will defend this December in Las Vegas, NV. 2021 Olympia runner-up Erin Banks is the favorite going into this contest. He will be challenged by 10 other contenders including Diogo Montenegro and Bong Seok Choi, both of whom are fan favorites.
- Erin Banks (USA)
- Bong Seok Choi (South Korea)
- Riccardo Croci (Italy)
- Terrence Teo Kok Hua (Malaysia)
- Drelyn Hunt (USA)
- Emanuel Hunter (USA)
- Daniel Leone (Italy)
- Vinicius Mateus (Brasil)
- Diogo Montenegro (Brasil)
- Ramses Rams (Spain)
- Antoine Weatherspoon (USA)
Pro Wheelchair
The Pro Wheelchair division was first established at the Arnold Classic in 2016. Four-time Olympia champion and five-time Arnold winner Harold Kelley will be the favorite to add a sixth Arnold trophy to his mantle. “King Kong” will face eight other men representing five countries that hope to pull off the biggest upset of the weekend.
- Gabriele Andriulli (Italy)
- Anand Arnold (India)
- Bradley Betts (USA)
- Adelfo Cerame Jr. (USA)
- Harold Kelley (USA)
- Antoni Khadraoui (Algeria)
- Chad McCrary (USA)
- Daniel Minster (Czech Republic)
- Johnny Quinn (USA)
Fitness International
Missy Truscott will look to bounce back from her second-place finish at the 2021 Olympia by three-peating in Columbus. The defending champion will have to hold off three of last year’s top five finishers — Ariel Khadr (3rd), Jaclyn Baker (4th), and Aurika Tyrgale (5th) as well as six other competitors from the USA, Canada, and Finland.
- Jaclyn Baker (USA)
- Amanda Ciani (USA)
- Kate Errington (USA)
- Ariel Khadr (USA)
- Sara Kovach (USA)
- Allison Kramer (USA)
- Minna Pajulahti (Finland)
- Missy Truscott (USA)
- Aurika Tyrgale (USA)
- Tamara Vahn (Canada)
Figure International
Five-time Olympia winner and 2019 Figure International champ Cydney Gillon is one of the most dominant athletes in the sport leading up to this contest. Her physique at the 2021 Olympia was considered by many to be her best form yet. She will share the stage with 2020 Figure International winner Natalia Soltero from Mexico as well as eight other contenders from all over North America and South Korea.
- Latoya Farley (USA)
- Wendy Fortino (USA)
- Cydney Gillon (USA)
- An Da Jeong (South Korea)
- Nicole Zenobia Graham (USA)
- Lola Montez (Canada)
- Jessica Reyes Padilla (Puerto Rico)
- Larhannah Robinson (USA)
- Natalia Soltero (Mexico)
- Bojana Vasiljevic (USA)
Bikini International
This is the only division that has two Olympia champions included. Ashley Kaltwasser and Elisa Pecini have both won the Bikini International. Joining them will be inaugural Arnold UK winner Phoebe Hagan and seven other women that will be the pride of five countries.
- Maureen Blanquisco (USA)
- Lauren Dannenmiller (USA)
- Alessia Facchin (Italy)
- Phoebe Hagan (United Kingdom)
- Ashley Kaltwasser (USA)
- Jourdanne Lee (USA)
- Lucia Malavaze (USA)
- Elisa Pecini (Brasil)
- Danielle Phelps (USA)
- Allison Testu (France)
Wellness International
For the first time, the Wellness division will have a contest at this year’s Arnold Sports Festival. 2021 Olympia runner-up Angela Borges will hope to emerge as the first Wellness International champion, which would cement her status as the top contender to challenge Olympia winner Francielle Mattos. Borges will have to match or improve upon her Olympia form if she is to defeat the nine other contenders standing in her way. This field will feature athletes from North and South America.
- Sunny Andrews (USA)
- Yarishna Ayala (USA)
- Angela Borges (Brasil)
- Devyn Cambre (USA)
- Barbara Cesar (USA)
- Julia Chitarra (Brasil)
- Casey DeLong (USA)
- Kassandra Gillis (Canada)
- Isabelle Nunes (USA)
- Lorena Ragusa (USA)
Wrapping Up
From March 3-6, 2022, some of the world’s greatest bodybuilders will be descending on Columbus, OH to compete during the Arnold Sports Festival. Whether you want to tune into the Pro Wheelchair competition or check out who will rise to the top of Classic Physique, the 2022 Arnold Classic is going to have something for you.
Featured Image: @brandon_curry on Instagram