Why are the Enhanced Games, taking place in Las Vegas this weekend, so contentious, and how have governing bodies have responded to the event?

A controversial new sports event that allows athletes to take performance enhancing drugs that are outlawed in official competitions – and also offers huge prizes to participate and “break” world records.

This Sunday, 24 May, at a specially built 2,500-seater arena at Resorts World in Las Vegas. As things stand, 42 athletes will compete in the following events:

Swimming: 50m and 100m freestyle, 50m and 100m butterfly.

There will then be a post-event show from the Killers.

More than a dozen Olympic swimmers have signed up, including Britain’s Ben Proud, who won a silver medal in 50m freestyle at the Paris Games; Ukraine’s Andriy Govorov, who holds the world record for the 50m butterfly; and the Australian former 100m freestyle world champion James Magnussen.

In track and field, the biggest name by far is the 2022 world 100m champion, Fred Kerley of the United States, whose personal best is 9.76sec.

Two other British athletes are competing: the 100m sprinter Reece Prescod, whose personal best is 9.93sec, and the swimmer Emily Barclay.

The Enhanced Games says that only drugs approved by America’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can be taken. They include the following – which, it is important to note, are all outlawed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada):

Testosterone and anabolics such as methenolone and nandrolone.

Hormones and growth factors, such as human growth hormone and EPO.

Metabolic modulators, such as meldonium, and stimulants, including Adderall.

The Enhanced Games says that 37 of its 42 athletes have been involved in an International Review Board (IRB) trial in Abu Dhabi from January to May, in which health professionals have monitored the substances being used and the competitors’ health.

Two athletes involved (Hunter Armstrong of the USA and Tristan Evelyn from Barbados, both swimmers) are not enhancing. Three others (Cody Miller, an American swimmer who won a gold medal at Rio 2016, and Wes Kitts and Dylan Cooper, both American weightlifters) are enhancing with private approved doctors outside the trial.

By claiming that far more athletes cheat in traditional sports than are caught – and therefore the Enhanced Games claims it is being more transparent by allowing them to take drugs administered by qualified professionals.

It also claims that athletes undergo “frequent and multilayered medical screenings including musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, brain, liver, kidney scans, blood and urine analysis, bone density analysis and a mental health battery.”

Wada dismisses them completely. It calls the Enhanced Games a “dangerous and irresponsible concept” and points out that the FDA-approved drugs are all on its banned list and may not be safe.

“This event seeks to promote the use of powerful substances and methods by athletes,” it says. “Over the years, there have been many examples of athletes suffering serious long-term side-effects from their use of prohibited substances and methods. Some have died.”

The Enhanced Games says that its athletes are receiving yearly salaries, often three to five times what they would get from their national federations, as well as an appearance fee. For all events there is a $500,000 prize pool, with the winner receiving $250,000 of that.

If a winner breaks a world record they receive an additional $250k, except in the two glamour events (the 50m freestyle and 100m sprint) where the prize is an additional $1m.

Yes and no. It’s impossible to imagine Usain Bolt’s 100m record of 9.58sec being lowered without some serious shenanigans with the track. However swimming is a different story, given that the athletes will not only be using performance enhancing drugs but wearing polyurethane speed suits, which are also banned from official competition. None of these “world records” will count officially.

Last year, for instance, the Enhanced Games swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev was paid $1m after unofficially breaking the 50m freestyle world record in a time of 20.89sec – however the Greek was using banned drugs and the speed suit.

The current all-time raw deadlift world record of 510kg, set by the Icelandic strongman (and Game of Thrones actor) Hafthór “Thor” Björnsson, is also likely to be broken.

The Enhanced Games will be live streamed on Sunday evening local time through Roku across the US, and internationally on its YouTube channel.

Sebastian Coe, the president of World Athletics, spoke for many sports federations. “It’s bollocks isn’t it?” he said. “I can’t really get excited about it. There’s only one message, and that is if anybody is moronic enough to officially take part in it, and they are in the traditional part of our sport, they’ll get banned for a long time. But I really don’t get sleepless nights about it.”

Travis Tygart, CEO of the US Anti-Doping Agency, was equally blunt, saying: “This is a dangerous clown show, not real sport.”

The Enhanced Games claims to be a “global movement that develops scientific insights, medical discoveries and record-breaking sports events to unite humanity and inspire innovation.”

But it also wants to sell a range of performance-enhancing drugs and supplements. It knows that the market for anti-ageing products is booming and wants to be a global leader. It claims that, unlike with many unregulated supplements bought from China, its products’ quality is proven. And it hopes the exposure that Sunday night will give it will have people rushing to its supplements, testosteroneand peptides – many of which are not yet approved by the FDA.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/may/21/enhanced-games-explained-sports-most-controversial-event-unpacked