Sebastian Coe slams 'b******s' pro-doping athletics event with ban threat for 'moronic' competitors

The Enhanced Games wants to challenge the ‘corrupt’ Olympics before giving the green light to performance-enhancing drugs
Marc Mayo29 February 2024

An athletics championship designed to allow competitors to use banned substances has been dismissed as “bollocks” by Sebastian Coe.

The World Athletics president has responded to the Enhanced Games concept ahead of this weekend's world indoor athletics championships in Glasgow.

"Well it's bollocks, isn't it?" Coe told reporters.

"I can't really get excited about it.

"There's only one message and that is if anybody is moronic enough to feel that they want to take part in that, and they are from the traditional, philosophical end of our sport, they'll get banned and they'll get banned for a long time."

The doping-permitted event has said it wants to target the "hypocritical, corrupt and dysfunctional" Olympics, and give athletes the opportunity to "push the limits of humanity", according to Enhanced Games president Aron D'Souza.

Retired world champion swimmer James Magnussen recently agreed to take performance-enhancing drugs in an attempt at beating Cesar Cielo's 15-year-old 50 metres freestyle world record for a $1million (£860,000) prize.

Coe, a fierce anti-doping advocate, did not mince his words with his dismissal of the event.

"I'm sure there are crazy things happening in other sectors, we occasionally get them," he said. "I really don't get sleepless nights over it. It's not going to be a page turner, is it?"

The world indoor championships run from Friday until Sunday at Glasgow's Emirates Arena.

Additional reporting by Reuters.

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