‘Steroid Olympics,’ The Most Entertaining Sports Experiment That People Deserve
How would the world’s best athletes perform if you let them take as many drugs as they pleased?
Read more American Pro-China ‘Journalist’ Charged With Covering Up CCP Ties
The Enhanced Games — dubbed the “Steroid Olympics” by some onlookers — sort of answers my question. At the Enhanced Games, athletes are permitted to use all the performance-enhancing substances they please, so long as the athletes are under medical supervision and those substances are approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Accordingly, cocaine and heroin are disallowed. Athletes had the choice to compete “enhanced” or “non-enhanced.” (RELATED: Tech Bro-Funded ‘Enhanced Games’ In Las Vegas Were Total Flop)
“Enhanced” Australian swimmer James Magnussen debuted a nearly unrecognizable physique at the games Sunday. The once-lean Olympic medalist drew silverback gorilla comparisons. Magnussen previously promised to “juice to the gills” in preparation for the Enhanced Games and break the world record, according to The Guardian.
Magnussen finished last in the men’s 100-meter and 50-meter freestyle. Kristian Gkolomeev, an “enhanced” Greek swimmer, finished first in the men’s 100-meter. He also nabbed first place in the men’s 50-meter freestyle with a time of 20.81 seconds — a world record, unofficially.
Gkolomeev was the only athlete to break a world record, receiving a $1 million bonus for the accomplishment. He wore a “supersuit” banned at the Olympics during his races.
Ben Proud, another “enhanced” swimmer, won first place in the men’s 50-meter butterfly.
But enhancement was no guarantee of victory.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MAY 24: (L-R) Andrii Govorov, Kristian Gkolomeev, Benjamin Proud and James Magnussen competes during the Enhanced Games at Resorts World Las Vegas on May 24, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Greg Doherty/Getty Images for Enhanced)
Read more INGERSOLL: The Democrats Are Right, Let’s Do A George Floyd Memorial Holiday
American swimmer Hunter Armstrong, non-enhanced, took first in the men’s 50-meter backstroke. Fred Kerley, non-enhanced, took first place in the men’s 100-meter dash.
Investors in the Enhanced Games include PayPal and Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel, Donald Trump Jr., and German entrepreneur and investor Christian Angermayer. Australian businessman Aron D’Souza founded the Enhanced Games.
Some have taken Armstrong and Kerley’s wins (and Magnussen’s loss) as proof of the futility of “enhancement.” It may be true that an athlete taking performance-enhancing drugs will typically lose to a non-enhanced athlete with superior genetic potential and training.
But what if the latter were to take performance-enhancing drugs? Consider the super-superhuman feats an “enhanced” Michael Phelps or Usain Bolt might be capable of accomplishing. (RELATED: 16-Year-Old Breaks Michael Phelps’ Record At US Swimming Championships BLOG)
(For the record, neither athlete has tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs, and Phelps has called for the World Anti-Doping Agency to adopt more stringent anti-doping measures.)
Regardless, the Enhanced Games are a form of human experimentation for which I’d advocate. If “enhanced” athletes break world records, we get to witness unbelievable feats of athleticism. If they don’t, then they don’t.
Post Comment