Enhanced Games (no drug testing) signs its first female athlete, world-champion swimmer Megan Romano
The Enhanced Games will debut next May in Las Vegas, featuring swimming, track and weightlifting competitions in an event that will allow athletes to use performance enhancers.
Romano calls competing in the event 'an opportunity to push the boundaries of human performance in a transparent and scientifically-backed environment, and to compete on a stage where female athletes are valued and compensated fairly. equally. I believe this is the future of sport.'
The Enhanced Games will offer a prize purse of $500,000 for each event with $1 million bonuses going to anyone who breaks a world record in the 100-meter sprint (track) and 50-meter freestyle (swimming).
Those marks would not count as 'official,' because world records need to be ratified by international federations, which require record-breakers to pass doping tests.
The International Olympic Committee has condemned the concept of the Enhanced Games, saying, 'If you want to destroy any concept of fair play and fair competition in sport, this would be a good way to do it.'
Thursdays
Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter.
But the games have built some momentum and raised money in the 'double-digit millions,' according to founder Aron D'Souza.
Four male swimmers, including Olympic medalist James Magnussen of Australia, have committed to the games.
Romano, a standout swimmer at Georgia in college, anchored the U.S. 4×100 freestyle relay team to a gold medal at world championships in 2013.
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
13 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Nordic Catcher S wins 100th Hambletonian in record time
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Nordic Catcher S won the 100th Hambletonian in a stakes-record 1:50 on Saturday at the Meadowlands Racetrack, giving driver and trainer Ake Svanstedt his third victory in harness racing's signature event. The trotter beat previously undefeated Super Chapter by a length, with Maryland, the 3-2 favorite, third in the $1 million race. Nordic Catcher S broke the stakes record of 1:50.1 set by colt Muscle Hill in 2009 and matched by filly Ramona Hill in 2020. 'I'm impressed with him,' said Svanstedt, a Hall of Famer in his native Sweden who has been based in the U.S. since 2014. 'He's tough and fast. It's a great win, for it to be historical, in the 100th Hambletonian. He's raced better and better each race, and his form was absolutely on top today. Everything was perfect.' Svanstedt co-owns Nordic Catcher S with Jeff Gural's Little E LLC. Svanstedt also won the Hambletonian previously with Perfect Spirit in 2017 and Captain Corey in 2021. He trained and drove both those horses as well. Go Dog Go was the early leader from post 10 and battled with Nordic Catcher through three-quarters in 1:22.4. Nordic Catcher took the lead and began to pull away in the final eighth of a mile, then held off Super Chapter with a final acceleration. Nordic Catcher S is a five-time winner with $813,285 in winnings. Nordic Catcher S paid $11.20 to win as the 9-2 third choice. ___
Winnipeg Free Press
43 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
MVP frontrunner Napheesa Collier leaves during Lynx's 53-point blowout win over Aces
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Minnesota Lynx forward and MVP frontrunner Napheesa Collier injured her right ankle and left the game during Saturday's 111-58 victory over the Las Vegas Aces. Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said it was too soon to assess the severity of her star player's injury. 'She was in the locker room with us, but as protocol, tomorrow or whatever chance we get, we'll continue to evaluate and examine images, all that good stuff,' Reeve said. Trailing the play in which Natisha Hiedeman drove the lane for a lay-up, Collier appeared to step on teammate Alanna Smith's left foot and immediately went down near Las Vegas' bench with the Lynx holding a 92-49 lead late in the third quarter. She attempted to stand, but sat back down on the court, writhing in pain, and was immediately surrounded by Aces starters A'ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, Jackie Young, NaLyssa Smith and Kierstan Bell, who all held towels to shield her from exposure. Collier's teammates, coaches and trainers eventually made their way to the opposite end of the court to tend to the 2025 All-Star MVP. The seventh-year pro left the court on her own and went straight to the locker room, moving slowly and walking gingerly while favoring her right ankle with a Lynx staffer under her arm. Collier did not return. The league-leading Lynx (24-5) are off until Tuesday, when they'll finish their two-game trip in Seattle. The 53-point victory in Las Vegas was the largest road win in WNBA history. Reeve wouldn't speculate if Collier would get an MRI in Las Vegas, travel with the team to Seattle, or return home to Minnesota. 'It's just way too early,' Reeve said. 'At this point in time, I don't know exactly what's happening.' ___ AP WNBA:
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Ricky Pearsall's journey from gunshot wound to 49ers' key receiver
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Ricky Pearsall's rookie season for the San Francisco 49ers never really got off the ground. Nagging injuries kept him out of almost all of training camp and then he was shot in the chest during a robbery attempt by a 17-year-old in San Francisco about a week before the start of the season Pearsall survived the shooting and made it back on the field for the final 11 games, but wasn't able to truly show why he was picked in the first round by the Niners. 'I just felt like I was behind the eight ball,' Pearsall said. 'I like to say that I rolled out of bed and started running routes because I damn near did. You can't really rehab a gunshot wound. So I basically rolled out of bed and started running routes in Week 7. … From that Week 7 and on, that was my training camp. Those practices in between, before the games, that was my training camp, for me.' Pearsall made an immediate impact after getting back on the field and had a 46-yard TD catch in a Week 9 win at Tampa Bay. He then caught only two passes over the next five games as he struggled to become a consistent part of the offense. Pearsall thought he was still getting open during that stretch yet just didn't get the ball that way, but it isn't so simple in San Francisco's complex offense based so heavily on timing. Sometimes he would make an extra move to get off press coverage at the line or take an extra step to open down the field, but it was too late for quarterback Brock Purdy. 'We had a couple of those moments and there were times where he took it a little deeper and then broke open.' Purdy said. 'He was like, 'dude I was open.' I said in the timing of the play, I needed it quicker. So, we had moments like that, and that's part of getting to the NFL. … I think toward the end of the last season, you saw Ricky come out his shell, he was playing within our system and timing.' That was evident in the final two games when Pearsall had 14 catches for 210 yards and two TDs in a confidence-building finish to an otherwise difficult rookie season. Pearsall's late-season surge provided a rare bright spot at the end of a disappointing six-win season for the 49ers. His role is much more important in 2025 with Deebo Samuel having been traded to Washington in the offseason and Brandon Aiyuk expected to miss the start of the season recovering from knee surgery. San Francisco has few proven options at receiver with free agent acquisition Demarcus Robinson facing a possible suspension for a DUI arrest. Last year's leading wideout Jauan Jennings' status also is unknown as he is currently sidelined by a calf injury. Pearsall has carried over that performance to training camp where he has been San Francisco's best receiver since he returned from a hamstring injury. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. 'To be honest, I'm approaching it the same exact way,' Pearsall said. 'Whether those guys are in the room or not, that's just how I look at myself. I just got to be able to step in that role. That's just how I look at it. I look at myself as being able to be a guy that goes out there and makes plays. Whether they're there or not, that's how I look at myself.' The aftermath of the shooting is something that Pearsall is still dealing with 11 months later even if physically he is healthy once again. He has expressed an interest in talking to the 17-year-old charged in his shooting, but is focused first on getting himself right. 'Unfortunately, I revisit that every single night I go to bed,' he said. 'I kind of just carry that with me. Now it's not as much as avoiding it and whether or revisiting it or not revisiting it. It's more about how I deal with it and the light I put on it. It's more a positive light and things I can get out of that, to try to inspire other people. As far as my own personal stuff, I've been doing a better job dealing with it, myself.' ___ AP NFL:
