What are the Enhanced Games?
It's an event where athletes are permitted to take pharmaceuticals ordinarily banned in sports. Substances must only be approved by the United States' Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a much lower bar than traditional sporting anti-doping organizations would employ.
Launched in 2023, organizers promised thousands of athletes competing in five sports. After aborted attempts to start it earlier, and some "exhibition events" featuring what the Enhanced Games call a swimming world record, the first Enhanced Games take place on May 24 in Las Vegas. In the end, it will feature 50 athletes across three sports — swimming, sprinting and weightlifting.
There is plenty of money behind it, with each event offering a total purse of $500,000 (€430,000), with $250,000 awarded to first place. There are also appearance fees and record-breaking bonuses, with $1 million for world records broken in the 100m sprint and swimming's 50m freestyle. A purpose-built stadium has a capacity of 2,500 for the event.
Why are the Enhanced Games controversial?
