Usain Bolt set a world record in the 100m sprint at the 2009 World Athletics Championships in Berlin, Germany. Photo by Reuters |
According to a public announcement made by Enhanced Games CEO Maximilian Martin on Wednesday, the prize money is intended to attract elite sprinters, given limitations seen at the sprint events of the inaugural ediction on May 24, Mark reported.
German billionaire Christian Angermayer, one of the co-founders of Enhanced Games, claimed that sprinting is one of the “weakest” events at the competition, citing the low quality of the athletes and the lack of top-tier competitors.
Bolt set the 100 m world record of 9.58 seconds in Berlin in August 2009, and holds the Olympic record of 9.63 seconds set in London in 2012. Additionally, the Jamaican legend holds the 200 m world record with a time of 19.19 seconds, also set in Berlin in 2009.
In May 2024, American sprinter Fred Kerley boldly declared he would break Bolt’s historic mark. At the Enhanced Games, the Olympic medalist competed in the 100 m dash and finished first with a time of 9.97 seconds, which fell short of Kerley’s personal best of 9.76 seconds set in Eugene in 2022, according to Ground News.
 |
Fred Kerley won the men’s 100m race at the Enhanced Games in Las Vegas on May 24, 2026. Photo by AP |
The inaugural Enhanced Games took place at Resorts World Las Vegas. Organizers billed it as the first international sports event at the intersection of elite sports and modern medical science, asserting that the use of performance-enhancing drugs could redefine the limits of the human body and change sports forever.
The event offered a lucrative prize pool, including $250,000 for each champion and a $1 million bonus for breaking a world record. However, none of the achievements set at the Enhanced Games will be officially recognized.
Following the Las Vegas event, organizers announced that 12 athletes had set 14 personal bests, all in swimming and weightlifting, and one unofficial world record was broken. Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev finished the men’s 50 m freestyle in 20.81 seconds, which is 0.07 seconds faster than the official world record set by Australia’s Cameron McEvoy in March.
However, Gkolomeev’s swim quickly sparked controversy online. On Instagram, several accounts claimed that the broadcast showed the time mark of 20.81 seconds on the screen just fractions of a second before Gkolomeev actually appeared to hit the wall.
A spokesperson for the Enhanced Games quickly dismissed the allegations, asserting that the timing system, operated by PrimeTime Timing, is “an ISO-certified, reputable system used at many international competitions and has never been questioned,” The Guardian reported.
Comments are closed.