While the field of competitors for both fitness and bodybuilding grew, the audience for the show as a whole also grew, with 50,000 attendees over the whole weekend, making it the biggest bodybuilding and fitness show in the world.

Prejudging - Fitness International
Friday started off the weekend with the Expo opening at 11:00 a.m. and the Fitness International competitors taking the stage for prejudging. There were 22 competitors this year, as several special invites were made this year on top of the usual 20 athletes, and included were the pro debuts for 2000 NPC National Champion Beth Horn, as well as debuts at the International for local competitors April Carpenter, Allison Bookless and Julie Palmer. Those three joined Jenny Hendershott as the "Fab Four Fitness" locals.

After the competitors took the stage and were introduced, the first round of callouts were made, and it was immediately noticeable that some of the usual suspects would be at the top of the judges scoresheets. Jenny Worth, Timea Majorova and Adela Friedmansky were the first callout with Kelly Ryan and Kim Chizevsky added to the mix over the next three callouts. Jenny Hendershott, Elizabeth Streeter and Allison Bookless were the fifth callout, with Melissa Frabielle replacing Hendershott in the sixth callout.

Kelly Ryan's face seems to have changed a lot from last year, and she looked noticeably bigger and harder as well. Majorova seemed to have new implants that were a little overpowering, but many were looking at former Ms. Olympia Kim Chizevsky.

Chizevsky looked like a shadow of her previous self, although her face was drawn in and she looked almost worse there than in her last year when she won the Ms. Olympia. Her physique was toned down to fitness levels, but her symmetry and muscles did not seem to look as good as a total package than many of the other competitors, although the judges rewarded her regardless.

Elizabeth Streeter, who always looks good in the one-piece rounds, again looked good and was compared against some of the other "top six" competitors (Worth, Majorova, Hendershott), but in the final wrap, placed significantly lower because of her low scoring on the 45-second mandatory routine round.

That round, which is weighted the same as the others, seems to benefit or hurt a lot of competitors. Some judges were heard to have said that some routines, while having the mandatory poses, were not as good as others, because of the presentation and flash of the mini-routine.

It seems like in that round, wowing the judges and audience shouldn't be rewarded as that is what the full routine round is for. It might even make sense to have the athletes get called out to do the mandatory poses just as they do for the bodybuilders, which would seem to be more fair, rather than the current system which may allow for more favoritism by judges awarding the more flashy routines.

In contrast to that, some competitors like Cynthia Bridges had great 45-second routines, but ultimately did not place as well. Bridges has some very difficult moves and was quite creative with her compulsories, while Chizevsky looked awkward and a little like seeing Monica Brandt in the early days.

Of course following Chizevsky was Hendershott, who, as usual, had a spot-on, super high energy routine. Beth Horn did well, with some difficult presses that transitioned into other presses without touching the floor, much to the delight of the Expo crowd.

Prejudging - Ms. International
The bodybuilders then took the stage with the lightweight class (under 135 lbs.). Along with the veterans were newcomers Yaz Boyum, Jennifer McVicar, and Canadian Raejha Savary. All three were making their first appearance at the Ms. International.

When the first callouts were made for the symmetry round, the more muscular and ripped competitors were definitely not rewarded. The first callout included Brenda Raganot, Cathy LaFrancois, and Dayana Cadeau. Cadeau had made noticeable improvements over her previous showings, and her back was tremendous.

Raganot was the defending champ, but it would take a lot for her to retain her title. Angela Debatin also had made some great improvements to her physique and looked less blocky than usual. Denise Masino also looked good this year, although her implants do seem to get in the way some and make her physique look a bit unbalanced.

Boyum, Savary and LaFrancois looked good during the round, but Cadeau and Raganot seemed to be the ones to beat. Savary had on an interesting, bronzed, but somewhat shiny tan on, which may have been a tad distracting, but made for quite an interesting look. Peggy Schoolcraft, true to form, came in shredded, with vascularity throughout, but didn't fare so well.

LaFrancois passed out during the symmetry round callouts, and was supposed to be in the last callout, but when the judges noticed she was out, they wrapped it up, letting the heavyweights take the stage.

Twelve competitors came out, including a new look Betty Pariso, and the Ms. International debut for Finland's Pauliina Talus, who we injured and unable to completely train for four weeks before the show, but nevertheless looked quite impressive, especially in her signature quads.

Gayle Moher also came in looking great, but Th-Resa Bostick looked off and also somewhat scary with her new hairstyle. Perhaps a style consultant would help, as it was quite a distraction and should not take away from any competitors' physiques.

Iris Kyle looked fantastic, and seemed like a likely challenger to Gates' title. However, it seems like the boxing mantra held true as Kyle seemed to be the better of the two, but as they say in boxing, if you can't knock out the champ, then the champ will always take a close fight... Is that fair? It wouldn't seem so, especially since the overall winner also gets an additional $10,000 in prize money, which many would say that Kyle might have deserved.

As the callouts were made, Gates, Lesa Lewis and Moher were in the first round. Lewis has also made improvements to her physique, although her height still makes her look a little too elongated. Yaxeni Oriquen was back and her physique did not make as many changes as others', but was solid as usual.

Pariso had a new haircut, and added more mass, while staying as lean as she usually is. Overall, an improvement that did not go unnoticed by the judges. Paula Suzuki was thick and very big, but for the symmetry round, it really hurt her, although the Hawaiian competitor continues to keep a good disposition regardless of her placements.

Amy Pazzo looked good and was improved from last year, when she placed fourth, but the competition was tough and she only ended up in the 8th place. Her legs still seem to lag behind her impressive upper body and once she gets that balance worked out, she should make the top three.

Tazzie Colomb was huge and a bit blocky, and Carmen Cotter made her first appearance at the Ms. International, but seemed a little off, possibly from the long trip from New Zealand.

During the muscularity round, Moher lost some momentum, although it didn't appear that Columb, Suzuki or the other larger competitors gained much. The same was the case for the lightweight class where Debatin definitely did well, but Monica Martin, Peggy Schoolcraft and Raejha Savary were all in the later callouts, and, with the exception of Savary, Martin and Schoolcraft were quite muscular.

As the crowds filled up Veteran's Memorial Coliseum, the Fitness competitors took the stage for their full routine round. Leading off the night was Jenny Worth who as usual had a solid routine, but without a major gimmick like a Harley-Davidson Motorcycle or black lights and neon outfits.

April Carpenter followed up with a very solid routine, and Dane Christina Kelstrup took the stage. In a cowboy outfit, her music was to a medley of Madonna tunes. Unfortunately for Kelstrup, who was making her Fitness International debut, she stuttered some during her routine, and was visibly disappointed with herself when she came offstage.

Overall, the routines were as strong as ever. There were some exceptions as noted from the 45-second routine round, and Chizevsky's evening routine looked nervous and did not have the snap of many of the other routines. Her sixth place finish is a little hard to understand when you compare her against the rest of the excellent field, but that's something that the judges may need to look at.

Other routines that stood out included Jenny Hendershott's, which had the crowd super enthused as did Beth Horn. Kelly Ryan had a Charlie's Angel theme, and Columbus local Allison Bookless had on an Ohio State University outfit that was much better than any that the actual team's cheerleaders wear.

When the final one-piece round was completed, it was to many people's surprise to see that Chizevsky made the top six, but the rest that made the cut were all deserving. Backstage, when Majorova was announced in fifth though, there were some surprised "oohs" from the other competitors, but that may be more from the fact that it seemed like the judges were favoring Majorova, and then she didn't place higher than fifth.

Finals - Ms. International
As the bodybuilders made their way out, it looked like the lightweight class was going to be hard to call, with Raganot and Cadeau looking to be the favorites, but Masino was looking even better in the evening show.

The routines overall were decent, but after watching the dynamic tumbling moves of the fitness competitors, they seemed a little slow but most were effective in showing off the physiques of the bodybuilders.

Of course, that didn't seem to deter her from claiming the Ms. International title for the third straight year. Iris Kyle again proved to be one of the best competitors in the field, but took second, although many would agree that she deserved to win the title.

The Expo and beyond...
As usual, there was almost as much going on outside the competitive stage and this year was no different. With the event growing and including so many other types of sports, the dilution of pure muscle and fitness types was evident. Although there were some impressive folks traversing the crowded aisles of the expo, there were also a lot more average ones.

At the Europa booth, another star packed lineup was signing autographs and selling photos, including Lou "Incredible Hulk" Ferrigno, and it was great to see the return of Nikki Fuller to a bodybuilding event. Fuller looks great and has recently had an appearance on Just Shoot Me and should be getting more roles in TV and film, which should be a boost to the sport.

Chyna (Joanie Laurer), of WWF fame was also on hand, and along with Arnold himself was probably one of the biggest names cruising the Expo floor, drawing huge crowds wherever they went. There were numerous other wrestlers and NFL pros as well, including Shannon Sharpe who was at the EAS mega-booth.

As the weekend wrapped up, the Expo exhibitors packed up their booths and put everything on sale. As the 2001 version of the Arnold Fitness Expo weekend wound down, it seemed like most were pleased with the event which continues to be one of the best in the sport.

As Arnold himself said, when referring to how big the show now is, no offense to the Weiders, but the Arnold is the biggest, and best show, even drawing in reigning Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman to compete.