The “Enhanced Games,” a much-hyped pro-doping sports experiment in Las Vegas last weekend, apparently failed to produce the spectacle it promised. Richard Porter on Tuesday’s RCP podcast argued that the results undercut the event’s own premise — only one world record was broken, in the 50-meter freestyle swim race, raising questions about whether enhanced competition is actually more exciting to watch. “Well, I think you’re taking athletes who are just one notch below the truly competitive world-class athletes,” Richard Porter said. “Look, there’s no question these drugs can enhance your performance. Look at Sammy Sosa. Look at Mark McGwire. Look at Barry Bonds.” “I don’t think that this undercuts the idea that you can enhance your performance with these drugs. What it does undercut is that somehow it’s going to be more exciting,” he said. “There are two ways of looking at it. One, Andy, is that some of these records were broken by people who were using and never got caught,” Carl Cannon said. “To me, the whole thing was a reminder of why we have to have drug-free athletes.” “In baseball at least, it can radically alter your performance and make you much, much better than you were and much better than anybody’s ever been. And it’s unsporting. It’s just not sporting. It’s not athletics. It’s something else,” he said.
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