GEORGETOWN, Guyana (CMC):
Guyanese Olympian Jasmine Abrams is the latest Caribbean athlete to reveal her intention to compete at the controversial Enhanced Games in May.
The 32-year-old Abrams represented Guyana at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. She won silver in the 100 metres at the 2023 Pan American Games.
She was named Guyana’s National Sportswoman of the Year for 2023 and holds the national record in the women’s 100 metres (11.07 seconds).
Abrams joins Barbadian sprinter Tristan Evelyn, a two-time Olympian and national record-holder in the 100 metres, who last week also announced she would be taking part in the event.
While the two follow in the footsteps of Jamaicans, Shockoria Wallace and Denae McFarlane, who announced their participation in January.
The Enhanced Games, which will be held in Las Vegas, has drawn widespread criticism because it allows competitors to use performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) under medical supervision.
Organisers say the event will feature a compact programme, including track and field, swimming and weightlifting, while offering unprecedented financial incentives. Among the most notable rewards is a US$1 million bonus for athletes who break world records in selected events.
Both the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and World Athletics have publicly condemned the initiative, warning that the event undermines decades of work aimed at maintaining clean and fair competition in sport.
World Athletics regulations and the global anti-doping code prohibit the use of banned substances, meaning participation in such an event could complicate an athlete’s eligibility to compete in sanctioned competitions, including the Olympic Games and major international championships.
