Enhanced Games launch in Las Vegas May 24

The Enhanced Games opened in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 24, with athletes competing under rules that permit many performance-enhancing drugs, according to organizers and multiple news reports. The inaugural event is being staged at Resorts World in a temporary 2,500-seat arena built for sprinting, swimming and weightlifting. Organizers have cast the meet as a new model for elite sport, while anti-doping officials and many athletes have denounced it as a direct challenge to long-standing rules on fairness and safety. Fred Kerley, the two-time Olympic medalist in sprinting, said ahead of the event that he planned to compete without using performance enhancers. ### How is this competition different from every other elite meet? The central rule change is that the Enhanced Games does not use the anti-doping framework that governs the Olympics, World Athletics or most international federations. NPR reported that dozens of athletes, including former Olympians, were expected to take part in Las Vegas while using performance-enhancing drugs, and the BBC reported that most of the 42 athletes in the field would be using testosterone, with some also using growth hormone or stimulants. (wvxu.org) The event’s backers say athletes may compete either “naturally” or with medically supervised enhancement. ESPN previously reported that organizers planned an event in which substances such as steroids, testosterone and growth hormone would be allowed even though they are banned in conventional sport. ### Who is actually competing in Las Vegas? Fred Kerley is the highest-profile track athlete attached to the event, and he said he would run clean. (wvxu.org) NPR’s May 24 report said Kerley was appearing at the Sunday-night event but, unlike most competitors, would not take performance-enhancing drugs. Yahoo Sports also reported that Kerley had said he would compete with zero PED use. (espn.com) The athlete pool extends beyond track. BBC, CBC and USA Today reported that the field includes swimmers, runners and weightlifters, with more than 40 athletes entered overall and several former Olympians among them. ### Why was Las Vegas chosen, and what does the event look like? Resorts World Las Vegas is the site of a purpose-built venue that organizers have used as the launch setting for the first edition of the Games. (kedm.org) Yahoo Sports reported the event was scheduled in a 2,500-seat arena at Resorts World, while the company’s own earlier announcements described a custom complex featuring a sprint track, pool and weightlifting stage. (bbc.co.uk) The format is built for a single-night broadcast. Organizers said opening coverage would begin before the main card, and Roku said it would carry the event in North America on the Roku Sports Channel. Enhanced also said the stream would be available on YouTube, Rumble, Twitch and Kick. ### Why has the event drawn so much backlash? (sports.yahoo.com) The criticism centers on athlete safety, sporting legitimacy and the public promotion of banned substances. BBC described the event as the first of its kind to openly allow steroids in elite competition, and NPR said the meet had already become one of the most controversial experiments in modern sport. USA Today reported that the competition seeks to upend established sporting norms, while ESPN framed the event as a test of whether organizers can persuade a broader audience to accept a PED-enabled future in sport. (newsroom.roku.com) Those are the terms in which the debate has been presented by mainstream outlets covering the launch weekend. ### What should viewers watch for tonight? (bbc.co.uk) May 24 is the key date because the entire launch is being staged as a one-night showcase in Las Vegas. Roku said the main event would stream at 9 p.m. Eastern, 6 p.m. Pacific, and Enhanced said opening events would start earlier at 6:30 p.m. Eastern, 3:30 p.m. Pacific. The immediate next markers are the named participants and the broadcast platforms. (usatoday.com) Fred Kerley is expected in the sprint events, and the stream is listed for Roku Sports Channel, YouTube, Rumble, Twitch and Kick, according to organizer and platform announcements. (kedm.org) (newsroom.roku.com)