The 2009 Arnold Sports Festival will be a call to action for many central Ohio sport fans and chief among them will be the devoted supporters of Columbus resident and professional IFBB Figure Competitor Latisha Wilder.
Wilder will grace the stage during the Figure International Prejudging, March 6 at noon at The Greater Columbus Convention Center. Finals will be held Friday at 7 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium.
Wilder is an Arnold Sports Festival success story. She attended one year, became inspired, and is now one of the best professional “figure” athletes in the United States.
Wilder, 33, of Dublin, hopes to compete in her fifth Figure International at the 2009 Arnold Sports Festival. She finished seventh last year after a career-high fourth place finish in 2007. She first competed in Figure in 2005, when she finished fifth.
“I’ve competed in Olympia four times and the Arnold Classic four times and both are really special and a privilege to compete in,” Wilder says, a personal trainer and track coach at Hasting Middle School in Upper Arlington.
The Olympia you have to qualify for and the Arnold Classic you have to be invited to compete.
“Being invited is really special because you know that the promoters really value what you stand for and what you bring to the stage as a competitor," Wilder says. "It makes you feel good about the hard work that you put in and it makes you feel very special.”
Wilder, who earned her pro card in 2003 and will turn 34 before the 2009 Arnold Sports Festival, sees a long future in the sport. Among others, Wilder expects to face 2008 champion Gina Aliotti of San Diego, Calif. who won $16,000, a trophy and a Tony Nowak Jacket for her victory in Figure International Championships.
“Competing is one of those things that I really enjoy and I have not put a time on when on I want to retire,” Wilder says. “As long as my body will cooperate, and I feel good about it, I will continue to compete. When I wake up and it is not fun, then I will stop.”
For more information about Figure and a complete schedule of events, visit www.arnoldsportsfestival.com.