Saturday, March 5th, 2005 is the date of the Arnold Classic Men's Bodybuilding event. And once again, this year you can get it on Pay-Per-View. It will be broadcast live, from the stage of the Veterans Memorial Auditorium on West Broad Steet, in Columbus, Ohio. With it's extravagant stage, the top of the line hosts this year, and the awesome firepower of some of the greatest bodybuilders in the world, this is going to be one hell of a show.

The time for this live event - Saturday 7pm sharp Eastern Standard Time (4pm Pacific Standard Time).

The cost of this year's event: $29.95.

A number of Pay-Per-View channels will carry the event, including InDemand, and Direct TV. The Dish Network will not be carrying the Arnold Classic, alas, not all appreciate the art of the physique. You can order the Arnold Classic from your cable company. or via Direct TV. If you miss it live, there will be several replays in the following few days too.

The pro bodybuilders who are competing this year include Troy Alves, Melvin Anthony, Art Atwood, Gustavo Badell, Darrem Charles, Chris Cormier, Mark Dugdale, Anthony Freeman, Dexter Jackson, King Kamali, Victor Martinez, Lee Priest, Frank Roberson and Idrise Ward-El.

And how are the hosts of the Pay-Per View? This year's hosts presents an awesome trio, which will include Mike Adamle (former NFL Pro / Sports Anchor / Report), Lesley Visser (first women to be an analyst for NFL Football), and Lonnie Teper (celebrated journalist from Ironman Magazine). Clint Richards will be the show emcee. This marks a change in the way the Arnold Classic will be broadcast, featuring true professionalism commentating on the show, and bringing in a more mainstream nationally known hosts. Mike and Lonnie will be the host and co-host, and Leslie will be on the sidelines, analyzing backstage interviews and more.

This year's set design is supposed to be astounding, simply the best one yet. We can't wait to see how the 2005 Arnold Classic will be represented this year!

Notes:

About Mike Adamle: Mike attended Northwestern University and play football for the Wildcats. By the time he graduated in 1971, he had been team captain, All-American fullback and Big Ten MVP his senior season (1970). He is considered one of Northwestern's all-time greats, and can still claim four NU rushing records. He then went on to a successful seven-year NFL career. Adamle was a fourth-round draft choice of the Kansas City Chiefs (1971-72). He then played for the New York Jets (1973-74). Fans couldn't be happier when he returned home to play with the Chicago Bears (1975-77). After retiring from the National Football League, he joined NBC Sports from 1977-83, where he hosted SportsWorld, co-hosted the network's NFL pre-game show (1978-81) and handled a variety of assignments, including three Super Bowls. He also was the sideline reporter for ABC Sports' coverage of the USFL in 1984.

Adamle was the sports anchor/reporter for WLS-TV/Chicago from 1983-89. From 1989-94, Adamle handled Wide World of Sports assignments for ABC Sports. He hosted American Gladiators, a popular syndicated series from 1989-94. He also hosted The X Games late night and Destination Extreme programming, along with the network's Pro Beach Volleyball and World Special Olympics coverage. Adamle joined ESPN in 1994 as college football's lead sideline reporter. He previously worked for the network in 1985 as an analyst for the United States Football League (USFL) and served as the commentator for the XFL.