American swimmer Hunter Armstrong won gold in the men's 50m backstroke at the Enhanced Games, held on May 24-25 in Las Vegas, despite not using performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs). Armstrong clocked 24.21 seconds, beating competitors who openly used legal substances, and earned $250,000 (£185,000).
Armstrong, a clean athlete, also took silver in the 100m freestyle. The games allow athletes to use PEDs under supervision, with substances such as testosterone, growth hormone, peptides and anabolic steroids, all FDA-approved but banned in traditional sport.
Greece's Kristian Gkolomeev set an unofficial world record in the men's 50m freestyle with 20.81 seconds, beating Cameron McEvoy's 20.88. He won $250,000 plus a $1million (£741,000) bonus, though the record will not be recognised by official bodies. 'This is going to change my life for the good,' Gkolomeev said.
British swimmer Ben Proud won the 50m butterfly in 22.32 seconds, just 0.05 seconds off an unofficial world record and faster than the official British record. 'We all know what we came for. And that's world records,' Proud said.
American former world champion Fred Kerley also won clean in the men's 100m with 9.97 seconds. Organisers argue that allowing open PED use makes competitions safer, but the IOC and Wada have called the games 'immoral' and 'dangerous', while World Athletics president Lord Coe described participants as 'moronic'.
