Featured Image Credit: Enhanced Games
The Olympic games might be the pinnacle of competition for many sports, yet one controversial project proposes a format that pushes the ability of humans to the very limit through methods that are traditionally unattainable for regular athletes.
Achieving that extra one or two per cent could be all the difference between a middle of the pack finish and a medal, and often there's only a fractional gap between those all important gold and silver spots on the podium.
Achieving greatness as an athlete takes both natural skill and an incredible amount of hard work, but there is usually a limit that each person can reach that could prevent them from soaring right to the top.
Unfortunately there are also unethical methods that some have used across history to push beyond their own personal limitations, with scandals involving performance enhancing drugs and doping methods tarring the reputation and authenticity of some major sports.
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Enhanced is a company that approach that conundrum with a different, albeit controversial perspective, as its own take on the Olympic games provides a space where athletes can freely take performance enhancing drugs to see what really is the limit for their own performance.
This experiment of sorts has drawn the ire of some within both the sports and health worlds, as welcoming the prospect of doping isn't something that's going to get everyone on board.
However, the Enhanced Games isn't a complete free-for-all when it comes to drugs, with a surprising number of substances that are completely banned despite their potential benefit to the athletes.
One of the primary rules within the Enhanced Games is that athletes are only allowed to take 'banned' substances if they have previously been approved by an independent medical commission and are proven to provide a safe enhancement effect.
Each athlete undergoes a specific and individually-tailored medical evaluation that provides them with treatments that will enhance their performance in the games, and all drugs must also have been already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) — so no dodgy cocktails or black market serums.
On top of this, any illegal substances that you'd find from dealers on the street are also not permitted, with drugs like cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine specifically not permitted for use by athletes.
Part of the testing process also ensures that participating athletes are not under significant risk of death or long-term irreversible harm to their bodies, ensuring that the process is as safe as it can be while also pushing their performance to the limit.
It's far easier to determine the type of performance enhancing drugs that are allowed to be used at the Enhanced Games, as this comprises pretty much everything on the World Anti-Doping Agency's Prohibited List.
This list is constantly evolving with new substances being added regularly, but these include certain anabolic agents, peptide hormones, and hormone modulators — so long as it clears the thresholds established above and shows no warning signs for the individual athletes.
The most popular drugs for athletes at the Endurance Games include anabolic steroids, exogenous testosterone, human growth hormone (often referred to as HGH), and erythropoietin.
There has been significant pushback from various anti-doping agencies across the world, including a clear statement of disapproval from UKAD issued last year.
In the statement, UKAD's Chief Executive, Jane Rumble, outlined: "It is incredibly disappointing that any British athlete would consider competing in an event that flies in the face of the true spirit of sport.
"Any decision by any athlete to compete in the Enhanced Games risks undermining the values of a sporting landscape that prizes hard work, integrity, pure talent, and 100% clean sport."
Rumble also criticised what she called a "lack of credible evidence presented by the organizers" as to the physiological and psychological risks that the event could cause to participating athletes, declaring: "Taking Image and Performance Enhancing Drugs (IPEDs) is unsafe, and they are dangerous to your health and wellbeing, and undermine fair competition."
This years games kick of from Las Vegas on May 24 and will be livestreamed across platforms including YouTube, Twitch and Kick.
Despite pushback from some areas, Enhanced have certainly made the prospect of participating in the 'steroid games' an attractive one through a hefty financial incentive, with athletes compensated handsomely with big money payouts if they emerge victorious.
As reported by the Independent, individual event winners are entitled to a payout of $500,000, and anyone that 'breaks' an existing world record present within the world of traditional support will be granted an additional $1,000,000 on top of that.
Considering the likelihood of smashing these records through the use of PEDs it's clear that Enhanced have the money to burn, although it will be fascinating to see which records still stand despite the clear gulf in fairness.
There are currently four separate sports taking part in the Enhanced Games, with swimming joined by track, weighlifting, and strongman. Each sport has multple events, so there's plenty of money to go around.
