ROME, ITALY – AUGUST 17: Ben Proud of Great Britain poses with his Gold medal after winning the Men’s 50m Freestyle Final on Day 7 of the European Aquatics Championships Rome 2022 at the Stadio del Nuoto on August 17, 2022 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)
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Freestyle swimmer Ben Proud has joined the Enhanced Games for next season. The 30-year-old will be the first British swimmer to join the controversial event, which allows the athletes to use performance-enhancing drugs. Proud, who claimed an Olympic silver medal in the men’s 50 freestyle last summer, announced the news on Wednesday.
“It’s time for a shift,” Proud wrote. “I will be retiring from traditional swimming to compete in the Enhanced Games. “Stepping into a framework that challenges everything we know about performance, and a chance to chase the outer edge of human potential with the tools and possibilities of our time. This is where my next chapter begins.”
After competing in three Olympic Games and claiming six world titles in long-course championships, the athlete believes he has achieved everything he can from the sport. Furthermore, for Proud, the doping violations in swimming have been “incredibly frustrating.”After the doping scandal of 23 Chinese swimmers who were allowed to compete in the Tokyo Olympics, he feels the “answers aren’t quite good enough to regain trust in the system.”
Proud, who claimed a silver medal in the 50 freestyle at the 2025 World championships, believes signing with Enhanced Games will not “undermine” clean sport but provide new opportunities for him in a different direction.
“I will never take anything that I am unsure of. They are not allowing anyone to participate if they are under any stress or health risks,” Proud stated. The Enhanced games will take place in Vegas from May 21 to 24, and will approve performance-enhancing substances approved by the US Food and Drug Administration with strict measures.
Financial Motivation
Interestingly, Proud’s move has also been highly motivated by the potential financial support. Amid acknowledging no significant change in the funding and prize money provided by Britain for swimmers over a long period, he is now looking for new opportunities to secure the future of himself and his family at the age of 30.
“If you look at the facts, it would take me 13 years of winning world championship titles just to earn what I can win at one competition at the Enhanced Games,” Proud stated, highlighting the monetary perks of the event. According to the official site of Enhanced Games, along with the appearance fee and bonus, each event will carry a total prize money of $500,000.
Notably, the UK Anti-Doping Agency has issued a strong condemnation of this decision.“It is incredibly disappointing that any British athlete would consider competing in an event that flies in the face of the true spirit of sport.” World Aquatics has already introduced a bylaw to ban coaches and athletes who will participate in the Enhanced Games, leaving Ben Proud with just one choice.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/parasjan/2025/09/11/olympic-medallist-ben-proud-joins-the-enhanced-games/
