Created by 40-years-old Australian Aron D’Souza, the Enhanced Games is a new and controversial multi-sport event. The idea behind it is to admit the use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), currently banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), under medical supervision and control that, according to the event organizers, will ensure the athletes’ safety and health.

The declared objective of these games is to push beyond the athletes’ natural limits, break existing records and surpass the boundaries of human capability.

The inaugural Enhanced Games will take place in May 2026 in Las Vegas and will feature athletes competing in three main disciplines: swimming, track & field and weightlifting.

The Business Behind the Enhanced Games

The Enhanced Games are deeply commercial. They are structured around high-stakes investments, lucrative athlete payouts and a business model that pivots from traditional sport governance to an “entertainment-first” approach.

Unlike the Olympic Games – which rely on a mix of public and private funding, media rights and sponsorships – the Enhanced Games are entirely privately funded by venture capital funds such as 1789 Capital, and investors including Peter Thiel, Balaji Srinivasan and Christian Angermayer. To date, the project has reportedly raised around $300 million. 

Each event will have a prize pool of $500,000, with $250,000 awarded to the winner and $ 1 million bonus for world record breaking. Moreover, all participating athletes will receive appearance fees.

The Enhanced Games promote themselves as an efficient and athlete-centric event. They aim at cutting unnecessary costs by focusing on fewer sports, using existing infrastructure and reinvesting to fairly pay all athletes.

The Uncomfortable Truth: Why the Enhanced Games are Going to Succeed

 There are several factors that are likely to contribute to the success of the Enhanced Games:

• Proof of concept. The Enhanced Games have already demonstrated that their model can work in practice. Greek swimmer Christian Gkolomeev broke the long-standing world record in the 50-meters freestyle during filming for the Games’ official documentary. What’s surprising is the fact that the swimmer achieved this just two weeks after joining the Enhanced program. Wether it was luck or not, this result perfectly aligns with the event’s core narrative: that with full medical supervision, financial backing and cutting-edge training facilities, athletes can truly push beyond their natural limits.
• Unquestionable public interest. Regardless of personal opinions, the Enhanced Games undeniably attract attention. Featuring elite athletes like Ben Proud or James Magnussen, the event arouses curiosity. Furthermore, the timing of the event is ideal: with the next Olympics in 2028 and the conclusion of the swimming and athletics World Championships, the Enhanced Games will stand as the only major event on the calendar.
• A smart marketing strategy. The Enhanced Games are built on storytelling and spectacle. They recently released a compelling and engaging documentary. Furthermore, their main target audience is the casual sports viewer – people who watch disciplines like swimming or track & field only occasionally or during the Olympics, mainly for national pride but especially to see the best athletes breaking world records. By emphasizing entertainment and frequency, the Enhanced Games aim to fill the long gap between Olympic cycles and transform elite performance into an ongoing show.
• Transparency and compensation. At the highest level of sports doping has always existed and, in some disciplines, such as  bodybuilding, there is already a clear distinction between “natural” and “enhanced” categories. There is a long-documented history of doping scandals in sports, and not all were sanctioned (for instance, at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020, 23 Chinese athletes tested positive and yet were still allowed to compete and win four gold medals). In this sense, the Enhanced Games ensure transparency and fairness.
  Nevertheless, there is also the economic point of view. In a public statement released in May 2025, Christian Gkolomeev’s wife reveals that, during his career, her husband only earned about $5,000 per year, despite full commitment to his sport and continuous WADA testing. His choice to join the Enhanced Games was a purely money-driven – and it’s hard to blame him.
• The longevity market. The wellness trend is booming. Ordinary people exercise more, eat healthier and take supplement to optimize health and performance. Let’s take creatine as an example: once considered unsafe, it is now mainstream, widely accepted for its physical and even cognitive benefits. From this perspective, the Enhanced Games also serve as a kind of scientific experiment. It wouldn’t be surprising if, in 15-20 years, some substances now labelled as “doping” will be normalized and socially accepted, both in sports and in everyday life.

Conclusion

The criticism raised against the Enhanced Games is entirely legitimate, yet it’s impossible to ignore the brilliance behind the idea. Aron D’Souza has managed to create something completely new and the mix of controversy, innovation and spectacle is likely what will make it a success. 

By Federico Sittaro