Ben Proud Denies Enhanced Games Will Tempt Young People to Dope

The former Team GB swimmer Ben Proud has denied that young people will be tempted to dope after watching him in the Enhanced Games.

The 31-year-old is on a mid six-figure salary after joining the controversial event and could earn another $1.25m on Sunday night if he swims faster than the 50m freestyle world record.

However Proud pushed back when asked about the World Anti-Doping Agency’s claims that the event could tempt more people to dope. “There is a blurry line. I can’t argue against it. But to me, if you understand the stories of the people who are here, you’ll understand that we’ve done our career clean and we’re doing this for a very good reason. And more importantly, under the safest environment possible.”

The event has been universally condemned by sporting bodies and anti-doping agencies. However, the Paris 2024 50m freestyle silver medallist insisted he was at peace with his decision. “I’m not worried about my reputation,” he said. “I knew stepping over to the Enhanced Games was going to change a lot about my image and what people think about me. But if you understand me and my career, the 10 years that I had were all clean. That is in the past. And what I do now is a very different Ben Proud.”

Proud also accepted that using performance enhancing drugs and polyurethane skinsuits that are banned in normal competition would give him and his Greek rival Kristian Gkolomeev a chance of swimming quicker than ever before. “They’re both extremely valuable when it comes to racing,” he said. As a matter of percentage, it could be anywhere between one to two per cent each. I wouldn’t be surprised if both of us go under the official world record.”

Another British athlete in Las Vegas, the 100m sprinter Reece Prescod, also defended his decision to come out of retirement to join the Games.

“I’m not a bad boy, and I’ve not broken any rules,” he said. “If you look at my actual career, I have not got one naughty X next to my name, not one missed test, not one violation. So when I got my email from Wada, they said thank you Reece, you’ve now come off the list, I was good to go.”

Asked whether other athletes had sounded him out about joining, he nodded. “I think people want to join,” he said. “There are some that whisper, what’s Enhanced like? What’s your contract like? There’s always that kind of secret inquiry.” But he said he would be surprised if other GB athletes followed him. “I don’t think anyone’s brave enough,” he said.

Meanwhile organisers have insisted that everything about the timing systems, pool and track will abide by international standards. “We have the best timing systems in the world,” said Rick Adams, the Enhanced Games’ chief sporting officer. “We have the best officials in the world. These venues are to world and Olympic standards.”

Meanwhile several eyebrows were raised in the pre-event press conference when Max Martin, the CEO of the Enhanced Games, likened the Enhanced Games – which includes the 100m sprint, several swimming events, and weightlifting – to the Super Bowl. “We’re bringing everything together in a one‑night event, the Super Bowl of these three sports in a shorter, internet‑first for social media, not television,” he said.

Martin also insisted that when it came to the general population using substances like testosterone and peptides, the horse had already bolted. “It’s not that kids don’t know what’s going on,” he said. “Every three‑year‑old has access to an iPad or iPhone and can reach the internet.

“It’s not the use of performance‑enhancing substances that’s dangerous, it’s the misuse,” he added. “Our approach is not to be naive and pretend it’s not happening, but to take what’s happening in the shadows, put it in the open, and put the right clinical and medical supervisory framework around it. That’s the way to make it safe for people who choose to do it.”

That view is completely rejected by Wada, which calls the Enhanced Games “a dangerous and irresponsible concept”.

“Over the years, there have been many examples of athletes suffering serious long-term side-effects from their use of prohibited substances and methods,” it says. “Some have died.”