Bodybuilder Jodi Vance Dies at 20 After Attending Arnold Sports Festival

Bodybuiler and bodybuilding coach Jodi Vance died on Thursday from heart failure after attending the Arnold Sports Festival in Columbus, Ohio, per Bailey Gallion of the Columbus Dispatch.

Vance was not competing at the event. She reportedly began feeling sick after attending the Arnold Expo and was taken to the Grant Medical Center, per TMZ Sports, where she died.

Her family released the following statement on Instagram: "Her heart stopped due to complications of severe dehydration. Despite all efforts by the hospital, they were unable to revive her. She was a beautiful person inside and out and she will be missed every single day. This was sudden and unexpected. Please give her family time to process this loss in peace. If anyone takes anything from this, please put your heath first."

Vance's coach, Justin Mihaly, suspected that she had been using dangerous substances ahead of the Arnold Sports Festival despite not having any competitions planned for several months.

"Jodi used two extremely hazardous substances to improve her physique—I assume just for the Arnold Expo—without my knowledge, my approval, without family's knowledge, their approval," he said on Instagram (h/t TMZ).

As a competitor, Vance most recently placed third at the 2024 NPC Battle of Texas in the women's physique division.