- Ex-Aussie Olympic swimmer is chasing a $1.5 million payday
- ‘Missile’ has agreed to participate in the 2025 Enhanced Games
- The decision shocked other athletes, who were condemned by many
Former Aussie Olympic swimmer James Magnussen has a message for critics of the Enhanced Games: they will take place in 2025 and he is more than happy to be the event’s poster boy.
Magnussen, 32, recently grabbed global headlines after declaring he will embark on a program of performance-enhancing supplements in the quest to break the long-standing world record in the 50m freestyle.
If successful, the 100m freestyle silver medalist at the 2012 Olympics will receive $1.5 million from Enhanced Games founder Aron D’Souza.
The man dubbed ‘The Missile’ already has plenty of detractors – most notably AFL legend Adam Cooney and NRL great Martin Lang – but in a recent podcast with Hello Sport, Magnussen revealed his phone is ‘exploding’ in terms of interested parties .
‘I didn’t think it would be a (big) global story like it has been. People (clearly) want to see this happen,” he said.
Former Aussie Olympic swimmer James Magnussen had a message for critics of the Enhanced Games: they will take place in 2025 and he is happy to be the event’s poster boy
Magnussen, 32, recently made global headlines after declaring he will embark on a program of performance-enhancing supplements in the quest to break the 50m freestyle world record at the Enhanced Games in 2025
‘It’s a side issue, pure entertainment, I know that.
‘All I can say is that things have developed very quickly (at this stage). Everyone in the world is talking about it.
“I think you’ll see the (Enhanced) Games starting in the middle of next year (2025).”
Magnussen also told Hello Sport co-hosts Tom Birmingham and Eddy Simpson that he is happy to ‘go to the gills’ as he chases a life-changing payday.
On Thursday, Magnussen – who is a regular co-host on SEN Radio in Sydney – revealed that several former and current swimming stars are supporting his decision to compete in the Enhanced Games.
“Surprisingly, all the feedback from other swimmers was super positive,” Magnussen said.
“Say you’re a current swimmer and you go to the Olympics this year, you’re racing to win a gold medal, you win maybe 20, 30 grand and this is the pinnacle of sport.”
‘It’s so hard to win a gold medal in the Olympics, believe me, I know it as well as anyone.
‘You race for 20, 30 thousand. I’m sitting here and I’m about to race for $1.6 million.
At the Enhanced Games, steroid use by athletes is not only permitted, it is actively encouraged
The Aussie swimmer says he will ‘juice to the gills’ then break Brazil’s César Cielo’s 50m world record
“It doesn’t seem fair, does it?”
Magnussen is the only current major star competing in the rebel start-up competition, but believes more athletes will join in due course.
“Not yet, I think once there are dates and once everything is formalized you will see a flow of athletes,” he added.
His career best time in the 50m freestyle was 21.52 – at the 2013 Australian Swimming Championships in Adelaide.
And in what looms as a potential blow to the body, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced this week that athletes competing in the Enhanced Games like Magnussen are in danger of violating anti-doping rules.
WADA also labeled the Enhanced Games as ‘a dangerous and irresponsible concept’.