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Enhanced Games, dubbed the "Steroid Olympics" for allowing the use performance-enhancing drugs, concluded its first edition with underwhelming results as all three clean competitors claimed victories, and only one world record was broken.
The inaugural 2026 event took place on May 24 at Resorts World Las Vegas. Organizers billed the competition as the first international sporting event that combined elite sports and modern medical science, affirming that the use of performance-enhancing drugs could push the limits of the human body and change the landscape of sports forever. It was backed and promoted by German biotech billionaire Christian Angermayer.
The event offered a massive prize pool, including US$250,000 for each champion and a $1 million bonus for breaking a world record. However, no achievements from the Enhanced Games will be officially recognized.
According to The Guardian, the event failed to live up to its expectations. It was not until the final event that organizers declared a world record broken.
Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev finished the men's 50 m freestyle in 20.81 seconds, narrowly edging out the mark of 20.88 seconds set by Australian swimmer Cameron McEvoy in March.
Since Gkolomeev utilized both performance-enhancing drugs and a high-tech swimsuit banned in traditional competition, the achievement will remain unofficial, according to Euronews.
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Enhanced Games CEO Maximilian Martin bows to Kristian Gkolomeev after the Greek swimmer set a new world record at the Enhanced Games on May 24, 2026. Photo by AP |
Nevertheless, Enhanced Games CEO Maximilian Martin celebrated wildly, declaring victory over skeptics.
"We have arrived in mainstream culture," Martin said during the event. "We are here to stay. We have changed the world tonight."
First announced in 2023 alongside a series of shocking statements advocating for legalized doping, the actual competition fell far short of the promised spectacle.
While the majority of the 42 competing athletes were believed to be utilizing testosterone, EPO, or anabolic steroids, three competitors who refrained from using banned substances still emerged victorious.
American track and field star Fred Kerley, a silver medalist at the 2024 Paris Olympics, won the men's 100 m sprint with a time of 9.97 seconds. He sarcastically said: "Man, they need to do better than that. They need to work a little bit harder, get on that sh** a little bit more."
Barbadian sprinter Tristan Evelyn, who publicly declared she was competing clean, won gold in the women's 100 m sprint with a time of 11.25 seconds.
"This proves that winning takes more than chemistry," Evelyn said, as quoted by NBC News.
That message contradicted the tournament's intended purpose. Between events, large screens broadcast the percentage of athletes using enhanced drugs, noting that 90.5% used testosterone ester, 78.6% growth hormone, 61.9% stimulants, and 40.5% used EPO.
Fred Kerley finishes first in the men's 100 m race at the Enhanced Games.
Kerley and Evelyn each took home $250,000 in prize money. The only other non-doping competitor was Australian swimmer Hunter Armstrong, who secured a similar payout after winning the men's 50 m backstroke.
Prior to Gkolomeev’s final swim, the atmosphere inside Resorts World Las Vegas was overshadowed by a series of failed world record attempts.
Icelandic strongman Thor Bjornsson, famous for his role in the television series "Game of Thrones", failed to surpass his personal best deadlift of 510 kg. Despite using smelling salts to boost his adrenaline, he could only pull the barbell to knee level before dropping it.
Organizers initially hoped Dominican weightlifter Beatriz Piron would kick off the event by breaking the women's world record with a 100 kg snatch. However, she failed all her attempts, setting a disappointing tone for the rest of the roster.
The competition drew further criticism as organizers repeatedly discarded traditional sporting rules. After Canadian weightlifter Boady Santavy failed all three attempts to lift a world-record weight, the master of ceremonies unexpectedly announced he would be given a fourth try.
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Canadian weightlifter Boady Santavy after his failed attempt at the Enhanced Games, May 24, 2026. Photo by AP |
The atmosphere drew immediate comparisons to a casual school sports day, where failure simply meant getting a chance to try again. However, Santavy still failed to complete the lift.
Throughout the event, large screens played music, featured athlete interviews, and heavily promoted the event's sponsors.
British swimmer Ben Proud, who earned $375,000 for winning the 50 m butterfly and placing second in the 50 m freestyle, likened the competition to winning the lottery.
"I thought I could get a good life out of this. Boom! I'm here." Proud said, as quoted by The Guardian.
His girlfriend, Emily Barclay, a former British national champion who has never won an Olympic medal, also secured $375,000 after winning the women's 50 m freestyle and placing second in the 100 m race.
Despite the underwhelming results, CEO Martin confirmed the Enhanced Games will return next year on a larger scale.
Organizers claimed that approximately 250,000 people tuned in to watch the live broadcast on YouTube. However, it remains unclear how many of those viewers actually purchased the supplements and testosterone creams heavily advertised on the Enhanced Games website.
