About Us

Columbus Weightlifting Club, Inc.

Columbus Weightlifting Club (CWLC), an Ohio-based 501(c)3 corporation and  recognized weightlifting club within USA Weightlifting, was founded in 1999 to provide coaching services, training facilities, and other benefits to eligible athletes. The Arnold Weightlifting Championships (The Arnold) has been held annually since 2003. Having begun as a local competition, the Arnold is now recognized as one of the world’s premier international invitational weightlifting competitions.

CWLC, led by President and Head Coach Mark Cannella, is proud to have hosted the Arnold since the competition’s inception nearly a decade ago. Since 2003, CWLC and its partners have awarded nearly $200,000 to the competition’s top finishers in the form of cash, prizes, and scholarships. CWLC is excited and tremendously proud to have the honor of hosting both the 2012 National Weightlifting Championships as well as the 2012 Olympic Team Trials on behalf of USA Weightlifting at this year’s Arnold.

We teach explosion through the Olympic Lifts.