2-time gold medalist to swim in Enhanced Games

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Hunter Armstrong plans to swim in the PED-friendly Enhanced Games this May while pursuing his aspirations to compete in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Armstrong's attempt to compete in both events will test efforts by World Aquatics, the international swimming federation, to draw a firm line between the traditional swimming world and Enhanced Games -- a new organization that allows (but does not require) athletes to take many of the substances banned by other sports leagues.

Armstrong, a 25-year-old Ohio native who formerly held a world record in the 50-meter backstroke, told ESPN he plans to compete for the significant prize money at Enhanced Games without taking any banned substances. He said he believes that as long as he continues to comply with the drug-testing program for World Aquatics' athletes, he should remain eligible for a spot on future U.S. Olympic rosters.

Armstrong said joining Enhanced Games was his only option to continue swimming full time. He said he considered retiring last summer after his main sponsor abruptly severed their relationship, leaving him with no way to pay his bills.

"If I don't join Enhanced, I lose everything. If I do join Enhanced, I have a chance at not losing everything," Armstrong said. "My back was against the wall, so I had to reopen that conversation to see if it was a plausible option."

Along with the $250,000 prize for taking first place in an event, Enhanced Games is also paying athletes a salary and offering large bonuses to anyone who beats a world record. Armstrong said he plans to race in the 50-meter backstroke and the 100-meter freestyle events.

Armstrong said he spoke to officials at World Aquatics before signing with Enhanced Games, but he did not receive a definitive answer on how the federation would rule on his eligibility.

"Nobody really knows what's going to happen, and nobody will give me an answer on what's going to happen," Armstrong said. "So all I can work off of is what the rules say and take a chance because I won't get an answer by waiting."

World Aquatics amended its bylaws last year in response to Enhanced Games -- a change that Armstrong and others initially interpreted as a full ban on competing in both types of events. In a news release touting its new rule, the organization said any individuals who "support, endorse or participate in" events like the Enhanced Games "will not be eligible to hold positions with World Aquatics or to participate in any World Aquatics competitions."

"Those who enable doped sport are not welcome at World Aquatics or our events," Husain Al Musallam, the federation's president, said in the release.

However, the actual bylaw might be more permissive than it initially appeared. Armstrong said after consulting with lawyers, he is confident that a ban would only apply if he stopped following World Aquatics' rules and regulations -- including its drug-testing protocol -- at any point in the lead-up to the event.

World Aquatics spokesperson Torin Koos told ESPN that the federation will decide how to apply the new bylaw on a case-by-case basis. When presented with Armstrong's specific case, Koos said it would be "counterproductive and inappropriate for World Aquatics to speculate on 'what-if' scenarios."

USA Swimming, which selects Team USA's Olympic rosters, did not respond to a request for comment.

Armstrong competed in the last two Summer Olympics, earning gold medals as part of Team USA's 4x100 relay teams in Tokyo and Paris. He held the world record in the 50-meter backstroke for more than a year in 2022 and 2023.

Armstrong is one of several former Olympians and world-record holders who have signed up to compete in the first Enhanced Games in Las Vegas on May 24. The event will feature roughly 40 athletes competing in swimming, sprinting and weightlifting. The majority of those athletes are training in Abu Dhabi this spring, where they will use substances such as testosterone, growth hormone and peptides as part of a clinical trial approved by the United Arab Emirates' Department of Health.

Backed by several prominent billionaire funders, the organization says it wants to push the bounds of human achievement and provide better resources and compensation to athletes in Olympic sports. The company plans to make money by using the competition to promote its online marketplace for purchasing performance-enhancing drugs.