“You'd be a fool not to take advantage of this opportunity”

Shane Ryan, world short-stroke bronze medalist in the 50m backstroke, has joined the Enhanced Games project and says his decision is down to financial reasons.

• The first edition of the Enhanced Games will take place in May 2026, in a purpose-built complex in Las Vegas. The complex will have a four-lane 50-meter pool, a six-lane athletics track and a podium for weightlifting.

• Each trial will have a total prize pool of $500,000, with the winner receiving $250,000. Also, $1 million will be offered to competitors who break the world records in the 100m athletics and the 50m freestyle swimming events.

Shane Ryan, who retired from swimming earlier this month after representing Ireland at the 2016, 2020 and 2024 Olympics, said the financial opportunity was too good to turn down.

Shane Ryan: “When I go out into the real world, financially, what do I have?”

“At the next Olympics I will be 34 years old. My shoulders and body probably won't hold up as well. I had to take a step back and reconsider. When I go out into the real world, financially, what do I have? Unfortunately, Olympic athletes are not well paid at all. It's a financial decision, but also an opportunity for me to be part of something new and exciting,” said Shane Ryan on RTÉ Radio 1's Drivetime.

He continued: “I earned 18,000 euros for several years and tried to compete and train. It is very, very difficult to also have a job when you practice swimming. What I was earning is below the minimum wage, especially in Ireland. I lived in Dublin for a very long time, representing Ireland for over a decade, and sacrificed friends and family by missing all sorts of events“.

Shane Ryan PHOTO Imago

Ryan insisted he was doing nothing ethically wrong, but admitted that when it comes to his legacy, he feels he is giving up a part of it.

“What I have to do now is put myself first. Financially, I make over six figures in nine months and then I can make over $600,000 when the time comes. I will compete in two events, 100m freestyle and 50m backstroke, in May, and if I win one of them, I will receive $250,000. If I win both, I'll get half a million dollars more than what I'm currently making. For me, as a 31-year-old athlete, it's like a kind of financial boost,” he emphasized.

Shane Ryan also told the quoted source: “Financially, it's a huge thing. I've been swimming all my life and I want to take advantage of this opportunity. I've spoken to a lot of people outside of the swimming world who are very excited. They've said, 'Shane, you'd be stupid not to take advantage of this opportunity'.”

Shane Ryan: 'I'm willing to accept this choice and accept the consequences'

Testosterone, human growth hormones and EPO are among the banned substances Ryan could end up taking. He said he was willing to accept the potentially harmful physical consequences of doping, while insisting he was “100%” behind clean participation in the Olympics.

“Everybody thinks that once I sign up for the Enhanced Games, I'm doping, that's not true. At the moment, I'm still a clean athlete,” he said.

He also gave some details about what's to come: “We are in Las Vegas until December and training completely clean. When January-March comes, we will go to Abu Dhabi to do a case study, a test, where we will only be for two months at most, but everyone is different. There is always the possibility that this will affect my body in a negative way, but I am willing to accept that choice and accept the consequences, if necessary.” he concluded.

On the list of swimmers who will take the start were James Magnussen (34 years old), three-time Olympic medalist and three-time world champion in 100 m freestyle, Ukrainian Andrii Govorov (33 years old), world record holder in 50 m butterfly, Greek Kristian Gkolomeev (32 years old), Olympic finalist and European champion in 50 m freestyle, and American Megan Romano (34 years old), world champion in 2013 with the 4x100m freestyle and 4x100m medley relays.

They were joined by Britain's Ben Proud (31), Olympic runner-up in the 50m freestyle and double world champion in the 50m freestyle and 50m butterfly, Germany's Marius Kusch (32) and now Shane Ryan.