Memorial Day weekend in Las Vegas is summer’s official kickoff—pools at full tilt, marquees stacked top to bottom, the city gearing up for the high temps. This year, add one more headline to the bill: the inaugural Enhanced Games, touching down at Resorts World Las Vegas May 23-24. We caught up with Maximilian Martin, the 29-year-old CEO of Enhanced Group, to find out what we're in for.
How do you describe Enhanced Games at a dinner party?
It’s a new sporting competition where science is at the heart of it. Think of it as a Super Bowl of three sports—swimming, sprinting and weightlifting—in one evening, and you can watch all of them from the same seat. Athletes can be “enhanced,” meaning they can use medical substances that would typically get them banned from elite international competition, but under proper clinical supervision, the benefits are massive, not just on performance but on recovery and longevity.
Why Las Vegas?
We scouted basically the entire globe. Las Vegas is the entertainment capital of the U.S.—everyone loves to come for a weekend. And we were welcomed with open arms, especially by our partner Resorts World, under chairman Jim Murren. He understood the long-term impact this work can have on everyday people’s lives—whether you're 25 and training for a marathon or 65 trying to keep up with your grandkids.
What does the enhancement process actually look like for athletes?
The substances are all FDA-approved—things doctors prescribe every single day. Nothing experimental, nothing unknown. Athletes who choose to enhance have trained in Abu Dhabi since January under a 20-week program, medically supervised by SSMC Hospital and the Abu Dhabi Department of Health through an IRB-approved clinical trial. No one is required to participate— several athletes are competing completely naturally, and they’re paid the same either way. What’s remarkable is the follow-up care: Athletes receive medical screenings for up to five years after competing. That's unheard of in professional sports. Traditional testing checks whether an athlete is cheating; we check whether they’re healthy and safe to compete.
What moment are you most hoping audiences witness?
Breaking world records is always special. Last year, Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev broke a record that had stood for 16 years after being enhanced for only two weeks. People cried. No other human being on the planet was capable of what he just did. But I’m also excited about Megan Romano, who’s actually from Las Vegas—a four-time world champion swimmer in her mid-30s coming back to beat her prime-era best. That's going to be a defining moment, too.
Walk us through what the event will look like.
Alan Walker opens—he has over 40 million YouTube followers—and The Killers close, then an after-party at Zouk Nightclub. In between, it’s back and forth between sports: a track race, a swim race, a weightlifting set. Every event is under one minute. The prime-time segment runs about four hours, 6 to 10 p.m. Producing all of it is Van Wagner, who’s handled the Super Bowl for more than 40 years.
How do you want an audience member to feel after watching The Enhanced Games?
Mesmerized. Happy. Entertained. And desperate to come back next year—or maybe just desperate to go to the gym!
While the Enhanced Games are not available to the general public, you can watch the entire proceedings on its YouTube channel. For more information, go to enhancedgames.com.
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