'Enhanced' Olympics backed by Donald Trump Jr where banned substances are legal set to take place in Las Vegas
The 'enhanced' Olympic Games rival where athletes can use banned substances has received backing from Donald Trump Jr ahead of their first official competition.
A new competition hoping to rival the Olympic Games by allowing athletes to take performance enhancing drugs has announced it will host its ays it will hold its first formal event in Las Vegas next year.
The competition will be held annually and athletes will be permitted, if not encouraged, to take the likes of steroids, testosterone and growth hormones that are typically banned in other sports.
First announced in several years ago, the Enhanced Games later received backing from Donald Trump Jr, who joined the project in March this year, saying it was what the Maga movement was all about.
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Speaking at the announcement on Wednesday, president of the Enhanced Game Aron D’Souza spoke of creating 'superhumanity,' saying: "We are here to move humanity forward...The old rules didn't just hold back athletes, they held back humanity."
The Australian businessman is offering massive financial incentives for athletes competing at the Games, with each event boasting a $500,000 (£372,953) purse with $250,000 (£186,462) awarded to the athlete who claims first-place.
Athletes competing at the Enhanced Games will also he provided with appearance fees, with bonuses available for breaking world records during the competition.
Former Olympic swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev is one of the first athletes to sign up for the controversial competition, having agreed to compete in December, just months after he missed out on a medal in the 50-meter freestyle finals in Paris by 0.03 seconds.
In a documentary released alongside Wednesday's announcement, the 31-year-old allegedly set a new world record in the 50-meter freestyle, just weeks after he began training with PEDs.
While the world record attempt was closed to the media, meaning the result could not be independently verified. the Enhanced claims claim that it was verified by USA Swimming officials in attendance.
Gkolomeev refused to specify exactly which PEDs he has been taking, claiming that he did not want to encourage others to start taking them without medical supervision.
He said: "I really want to share it with everyone because it was basically nothing, but it's not right for other people to know because I don't want to encourage anyone to do what I do without a doctor.
"A successful year at the Enhanced Games for me is more than I could make in 10 careers," he added.
The inaugural competition will feature eight different events in swimming (50- and 100-meter races in freestyle and butterfly), track (100-meter sprint and 100/110-meter hurdles) and weightlifting (snatch, clean and jerk).
Gymnastics and combat sports were initially planned to be included, but it appears that these will no longer be apart of the first Enhanced Games.
Topics: Olympics, Athletics, Swimming, Weightlifting
Ben McCrum