The Games take place at a time when concerns are being raised over the medicalisation of Western society, with social media and ‘looksmaxxing’ blamed for fuelling demand for weight-loss injections, cosmetic treatments and performance substances.
According to UK Anti-Doping (Ukad), a “concerning” number of young people are being exposed to social media adverts for “life-threatening” performance-enhancing substances on a regular basis.
In the US, the FDA is considering easing restrictions on the use of peptide injections after Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr pushed to have the therapies deregulated.
The move was welcomed by Enhanced, which said it was “planning to offer access to additional peptides”.
Synthetic types of peptides have historically been injected by weightlifters and bodybuilders to enhance performance, but critics warn they can present a variety of health issues.
Ukad chief executive Jane Rumble told BBC Sport that the Enhanced Games “sends a dangerous message about PEDs, with little if anything said about the health risks associated, and those risks are significant”.
Prof Ian Boardley of Birmingham University, whose research has been supported by Wada, says competitors run the risk of a greater chance of heart attacks and psychiatric issues and that organisers’ assurances over medical supervision were “incorrect and misleading”, external.
BBC Sport asked Enhanced’s Australian swimmer James Magnussen, whose remarkably bulked up physique after taking PEDs last year went viral, if he had any concerns.
“I believe that were there to be long-term implications for my health, there surely would have been some short- to medium-term indicators that say ‘hey, this isn’t tracking properly, you are seeing side effects’. To this point we haven’t seen those,” the three-time Olympic medallist said.
“As professional athletes, we take risks with our health innately by what we do. There’s nothing healthy about training at the peak of your physical ability for 30 hours a week.”


















