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2026 Enhanced Games
The 2026 Enhanced Games were the inaugural edition Enhanced Games which took place on 24 May 2026 in Las Vegas, United States. The event served as the debut for the organization's model and featured competitions across core disciplines including swimming, athletics, and weightlifting.
| Column 1 |
|---|
| Logo of the Enhanced Games |
| Las Vegas, United States |
| 42 from 24 countries |
| 23 in 3 sports |
| 24 May 2026 |
| 24 May 2026 |
| Resorts World Las Vegas |
The 2026 Enhanced Games were the inaugural edition Enhanced Games which took place on 24 May 2026 in Las Vegas, United States. The event served as the debut for the organization's model and featured competitions across core disciplines including swimming, athletics, and weightlifting.
Twenty three events were held in three sports:
| 2026 Enhanced Games |
|---|
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| Athletics () |
| Swimming () |
| Weightlifting () |
Athletes from 24 countries competed at the 2026 Enhanced Games:
| Participating countries |
|---|
| Australia (1) |
| Barbados (1) |
| Brazil (1) |
| Bulgaria (1) |
| Canada (2) |
| Chile (1) |
| Colombia (4) |
| Dominican Republic (1) |
| Egypt (1) |
| France (1) |
| Germany (2) |
| Greece (2) |
| Guyana (1) |
| Iceland (1) |
| Republic of Ireland (2) |
| Jamaica (2) |
| Mexico (1) |
| Nigeria (1) |
| Poland (1) |
| Russia (1) |
| South Africa (1) |
| Ukraine (1) |
| United Kingdom (3) |
| United States (11) (host) |
Forty two athletes competed at the 2026 Enhanced Games:
| Country | Athlete | Sport | Olympics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | James Magnussen | Swimming | 2012 ( ), 2016 () |
| Greece | Kristian Gkolomeev | Swimming | 2012, 2016, 2020, 2024 |
| United States | Megan Romano | Swimming | – |
| Ukraine | Andriy Govorov | Swimming | 2012, 2016 |
| Bulgaria | Josif Miladinov | Swimming | 2020, 2024 |
| Ireland | Shane Ryan | Swimming | 2016, 2020, 2024 |
| Ireland | Max McCusker | Swimming | 2024 |
| United Kingdom | Ben Proud | Swimming | 2016, 2020, 2024 () |
| United States | Fred Kerley | Athletics | 2020 (), 2024 () |
| Germany | Marius Kusch | Swimming | 2020 |
| Canada | Boady Santavy | Weightlifting | 2020, 2024 |
| United States | Wesley Kitts | Weightlifting | 2020, 2024 |
| France | Mouhamadou Fall | Athletics | 2020 |
| Colombia | Isabella Arcila | Swimming | 2016, 2020 |
| Brazil | Felipe Lima | Swimming | 2012, 2020 |
| Poland | Natalia Fryckowska | Swimming | – |
| Russia | Evgenii Somov | Swimming | 2024 |
| Liberia | Emmanuel Matadi | Athletics | 2016, 2020, 2024 |
| Dominican Republic | Beatriz Pirón | Weightlifting | 2012, 2016, 2020, 2024 |
| United States | Cody Miller | Swimming | 2016 ( ) |
| United States | Shania Collins | Athletics | – |
| United Kingdom | Reece Prescod | Athletics | 2020 |
| Iceland | Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson | Strongman | – |
| United States | Marvin Bracy | Athletics | 2016 |
| United States | Taylor Anderson | Athletics | – |
| Germany | Mike Bryan | Athletics | – |
| South Africa | Clarence Munyai | Athletics | 2016, 2020 |
| Jamaica | Shockoria Wallace | Athletics | – |
| Colombia | Yoni Andica | Weightlifting | – |
| Chile | Arley Méndez | Weightlifting | 2020 |
| Colombia | Leidy Solís | Weightlifting | 2008 (), 2016 |
| Colombia | Juan Solís | Weightlifting | – |
| Nigeria | Mariam Usman | Weightlifting | 2008 (), 2012, 2016 |
| Guyana | Jasmine Abrams | Athletics | 2020 |
| United Kingdom | Emily Barclay | Swimming | – |
| Mexico | Miguel de Lara | Swimming | 2024 |
| Bulgaria | Antani Ivanov | Swimming | 2020 |
| Jamaica | Denae McFarlane | Athletics | – |
| Canada | Mitchell Hooper | Strongman | – |
| United States | Hunter Armstrong | Swimming | 2020 (), 2024 ( ) |
| Barbados | Tristan Evelyn | Athletics | – |
| United States | Dylan Cooper | Weightlifting | – |
The inaugural 2026 Games featured approximately 50 athletes competing across athletics, swimming, weightlifting, and strongman events. Because the Enhanced Games operate outside the jurisdiction of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and traditional sporting federations, records broken at the event are not officially recognized by governing bodies such as World Athletics or World Aquatics.
The event offered substantial financial incentives, including a $250,000 base prize for event winners and a $1 million bonus for breaking officially recognized world records. Athletes were permitted to compete as "enhanced" or "non-enhanced" competitors. Both 100-meter sprint winners, Fred Kerley and Tristan Evelyn, claimed to have competed without the use of performance-enhancing drugs, even submitting to testing by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) ahead of the event to prove their natural status.
Despite high expectations for record-breaking times, the track events were marred by multiple false starts and weaker-than-anticipated fields. Kerley won the men's 100-meter dash in 9.97 seconds, significantly slower than his personal best and the world record he had teased breaking.
| Event | First Place | Second Place | Third Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fred Kerley (USA)9.97 | Emmanuel Matadi (LBR)10.05 | Marvin Bracy (USA)10.39 | |
| Tristan Evelyn (BAR)11.25 | Shania Collins (USA)11.43 | Taylor Anderson (USA)11.48 |
The swimming events produced the Games' only world-record-beating performance. Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev finished the 50-meter freestyle in 20.81 seconds, undercutting the official world record of 20.88 set by Cameron McEvoy and earning the $1 million bonus. Conversely, former world champion James Magnussen, who was the first high-profile athlete to publicly sign onto the Games and pledge to use performance enhancers, flopped and finished last in the 100-meter freestyle final.
| Event | First Place | Second Place | Third Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kristian Gkolomeev (GRE)20.81 UW | Ben Proud (GBR)20.98 | Andriy Govorov (UKR)21.79 | |
| Kristian Gkolomeev (GRE)46.60 | Hunter Armstrong (USA)48.09 | Shane Ryan (IRL)48.92 |
A highly anticipated marquee event featured a deadlift showdown between Strongman competitors Hafthor Bjornsson and Mitchell Hooper. Both men attempted to break the all-time world record of 510 kg (1,124 lbs) by calling for 515 kg (1,135 lbs) on their final lifts. Bjornsson secured the victory based on his successful second attempt of 475 kg, though both men ultimately failed their world record attempts in the final round.
| Athlete | Attempt 1 | Attempt 2 | Attempt 3 | Final Placement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 425 kg (Success) | 475 kg (Success) | 515 kg (Fail) | 1st | |
| 400 kg (Success) | 440 kg (Success) | 515 kg (Fail) | 2nd |
- Enhanced Games
- 2026 Enhanced Games
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