Legion Sports Festival will run from May 31 through June 1 at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center.
Center Podium Productions
Reno-Sparks is known for some of the best special events in the West: Hot August Nights, Great Reno Balloon Race, Best in the West Rib Cookoff, and Street Vibrations.
Special events season typically starts with the Reno River Festival at the end of May, but another slightly lesser-known event kicks off this weekend at Reno-Sparks Convention Center – and the lineup is one of the most eclectic mixes of competitions ever assembled under one roof.
Legion Sports Festival makes its eighth overall appearance and fifth showing in Northern Nevada this Saturday, with attendance continuing to grow every year. The event billed as a “mega fitness expo” features bodybuilding and point and full-contact Muay Thai (a form of boxing that incorporates strikes with knees, elbows and kicks), as well as sumo wrestling, strongman, pillow fighting, armored combat (fighting in full plate armor using blunted weapons), cornhole, and arm wrestling.
Chris Minnes, owner of event producer Center Podium Productions, told NNBW the bodybuilding portion of Legion Sports Fest has always been the largest and most prestigious part of the event.
“It brings in the most people and some of the biggest names in the bodybuilding community,” Minnes said.
This year’s event marks the first time a full-contact Muay Thai competition will be held in Nevada, Minnes added. Muay Thai, strongman and armored combat have always been part of the Legion Sports Fest, and arm-wrestling returns after a one-year hiatus in 2024. The armored combat features a new format: 10-against-10 team melee, with the winner being the last team or person standing.
“It’s going to be like you are watching Game of Thrones,” Minnes said.
The pillow-fighting competition is open to anyone who wants to register, Minnes added. The wild mix of events at Legion Sports Fest is part of the draw for both competitors and spectators, he added. The $25 entry fee gains access to most events, but bodybuilding and Muay Thai require an upgraded ticket, Minnes said. The professional bodybuilders are competing for a share of a $40,000 prize purse that’s funded by sponsors, ticket sales and Center Podium Productions.
“We generally have about 1,500 athletes and more than 5,000 attendees,” Minnes said. “These are not mainstream events, but they are very entertaining. We have a very big strongman community here in Reno based out of American Iron Gym, but all the other competitors come here just for us.”
Legion Sports Fest also features an expo with more than 75 health, nutrition and related businesses showcasing the latest in food and dietary supplements, clothing, accessories, and education.
“There are all kinds of businesses,” Minnes said. “Of course, there’s a health and fitness focus, but a lot of people are coming for the expo in addition to the sports so they can try the newest supplements or see the newest technologies. It really appeals to a broad audience. An event like this, there is inspiration everywhere.”
Center Podium Productions has long been the backbone of regional bodybuilding competitions, Minnes noted. Center Podium Productions hosted its first bodybuilding event in 2011 at the former MontBlue Resort Casino in South Lake Tahoe, and Center Podium’s name recognition has helped Legion Sports Fest grow exponentially over the past half-decade. The first event that was held in Reno in 2020 was crippled by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the event has grown organically ever since.
“We came out swinging after that,” Minnes said. “When Legion first happened, we already had a reputation of having really fun and well-produced events. A lot of big names came in right away, and since then more sports and fitness celebrities have contacted us.”
Mike Larragueta, president and chief executive officer of the Reno Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority, said Legion Sports Fest is a dynamic event with established notoriety and a high trajectory for growth. The RSCVA supports the event with marketing funds to help Legion reach a larger audience in key markets.
“Chris does a fantastic job producing exciting, kinetic events, and his eclectic approach to entertainment appeals to a broad audience of competitors and spectators who have a propensity to travel,” Larragueta said. “Legion Sports Fest has earned support through the RSCVA Special Event Marketing Sponsorship Fund each year since 2022, largely due to Chris’ passion and willingness to make adjustments in an effort to maximize exposure, not just for his events, but also for Reno Tahoe as a sports events destination.”
Minnes said the RSCVA dollars have been instrumental in reaching audiences in important fly-in destinations.
“That support has been huge for us,” he said. “The big events in the same echelon as Legion are the Arnold Sports Festival (held in Columbus, Ohio at the end of February) and Joe Weider’s Olympia Expo (held in Las Vegas Oct. 9-12 at Resorts World). Both of those events are in cities with much larger populations, so they have a built-in base ticket sales. That’s why it's so important for us to reach into other markets and target other areas so we can achieve our mutual goal of filling hotel rooms and making Reno-Tahoe a destination.
“An event like this is a group effort,” Minnes added. “We have RSCVA helping with funds and marketing, and the convention center is extremely accommodating for some events that are outside of the ordinary. Being flexible is really important. We have a large group of businesses all working together with the same goal. Without this cohesiveness, an event like this just couldn’t work.”