Enhanced Games boss says anti-doping rules not about safety, hails ‘courageous’ Magnussen for chasing US$1 million prize
- Former 100m swimming world champion James Magnussen ready to ‘juice to the gills’ in attempt to break 50m freestyle record
- Founder Aron D’Souza says Games an acknowledgement that drug use is widespread in international sport
A former world champion swimmer has said he will take drugs in an attempt to win US$1 million at the Enhanced Games, a sporting event backed by billionaires where doping will not only be allowed but actively encouraged.
Australian James Magnussen, who won the 100-metre freestyle world title in 2011 and 2013, and retired from competitive swimming in 2019, said he would “juice to the gills” in an attempt to break the 50m freestyle world record.
The brainchild of former Hong Kong resident Aron D’Souza, the Enhanced Games has secured funding from billionaire venture capitalist Christian Angermayer’s Apieron Investment Group, PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, and former Coinbase CTO Balaji Srinivasan.
D’Souza said the competition, which has been called dangerous by sport governing bodies, was an acknowledgement that doping was already widespread in international sport.
Organisers plan to have athletes attempt to break records in athletics, aquatics, gymnastics, strength and combat, and 32-year-old Magnussen is the first to publicly say he would take part.
01:35
Chinese swimmer Sun Yang gets 8-year ban for doping offences
“If they put up a million dollars for the 50 [metre] freestyle world record, I will come on board as their first athlete. I’ll juice to the gills and I’ll break it in six months,” Magnussen told the Hello Sport podcast.