Swimmer Shane Ryan has retired from conventional competition to join the Enhanced Games, a new event where athletes will be allowed to use performance-enhancing drugs.
In this week’s Show Me the Science podcast, Professor Luke O’Neill looked at the science and the ethics behind this radical sporting experiment.
The Games’ creator, Aron d’Souza, has said he wants to celebrate human potential without the limits imposed by anti-doping rules.
Backed by investors such as Peter Thiel and Donald Trump Jr, the Enhanced Games are due to take place in Las Vegas in May 2026, offering up to a million dollars for breaking a world record.
"The only drugs [athletes] are allowed to take, if they wish, are approved drugs [during the Enhanced Games], so you can’t be taking illegal drugs,” Prof O’Neill said.
“Things like testosterone, which you can get for certain medical conditions, a second one is a growth hormone, and the third is another hormone called erythropoietin.
“These are prescribed for various medical conditions anyway, and athletes are taking them as dope.
“They’re banned, obviously, in sport, but still they are being used by a certain number of athletes, so these are the ones that are allowed.”
Doping in sport, concept photo. Image: Peter Kováč. 13 May 2020Prof O’Neill said that the ‘approved’ drugs help boost the body’s natural performance ability.
“Testosterone, as I hope people know, is an antibiotic steroid, natural hormone, and its natural job is to build muscle,” he said.
“So, the reason for muscle mass is testosterone, that’s why men have bigger muscles than women, they make a bit more testosterone.
“Women make it too for their muscles, but men make more.
“If you take testosterone, which some weightlifters do, that will build the muscle mass up hugely.”
Growth hormone
According to Prof O’Neill, the growth hormone cytokine is a growth hormone that promotes the growth of lean muscles.
“A major cause of dwarfism, which is when people are not developing properly, is a deficiency in growth hormone,” he said.
“That was discovered about 30 years ago, and in fact, you rarely see dwarfism now because they give them growth hormone when they spot this and now the people develop normally.
“But it has a second property that was spotted, and that is, it really does allow lean muscle to grow.
“So, it’s used for that clinically, but it has a second property that was spotted and that is, it really does allow lean muscle to grow.
“Very importantly, it got popular as a dope because it allows muscles to recover more quickly.”
Finally, when it comes to erythropoietin, Prof O’Neill explained that it helps increase red blood cell numbers, which increases oxygen levels in muscles, giving them more fuel to burn and allowing for better physical performances.
Main image: Luke O'Neill (L), Shane Ryan (R).
