Earlier this month, the sports world was divided on the Enhanced Games โ a โmodern reinvention of the Olympic Gamesโ that, crucially, wonโt test competitors for drugs or any other performance enhancers. Now, the controversial concept backed by billionaire PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel has dangled a $1.55 million carrot for Australian Olympian James Magnussen to come out of retirement and break the 50-metre freestyle record.
โMagnussen has the potential to show us what the human body, improved through science, is truly capable of,โ explained Melbourne-born Enhanced Games founder and entrepreneur Dr Aron DโSouza.
โWhilst we have not spoken with James yet, we wish to publicly confirm the prize money that will inspire him and many other Olympic heroes to join the Enhanced movement.โ
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โI do not doubt that James Magnussen, so known for his tenacity, determination, and giant six foot seven inches form, can break swimmingโs most important world record.
DโSouza went on to pledge the Enhanced Games would write Magnussen a US$1 million (AU$1.55 million) cheque for breaking the 50-metre freestyle world record, before adding โthere will be multiple million-dollar prizesโ at the inaugural edition of the event.
โThe first enhanced athlete to publicly break Usain Boltโs [100-metre] world record will also get at least US$1 million (AU.$1.55 million),โ said DโSouza.
It didnโt take long before James Magnussen himself publicly responded during a recent podcast appearance, assuring the masses thatโd kept himself in โreasonable shapeโ since retiring from competitive swimming in 2019.
โIโll juice to the gills and Iโll break it in six months.โ
James Magnussen (via The Guardian)
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With enough performance-enhancing substances and a strict training regime, itโs entirely possible for James Magnussen โ who only turns 33 this April โ to get the job done; the 50-metre freestyle record currently being held by Brazilโs Cesar Cielo at 20.91 seconds (set during the Brazilian Championships).
The Aussie notably won silver and bronze medals at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, as well as a smattering of gold across several major international competitions spanning the World Championships and Commonwealth Games.
As for when we can reasonably expect to see James Magnussen make his Enhanced Games debut, registration opens in late 2024 with the view of happening sometime in 2025. The specifics (date, location, precise events, total prize pool) are still TBA.
