Max McCusker has become the second Irish swimmer to join the Enhanced Games, a controversial competition that permits athletes to take banned performance-enhancing drugs under medical supervision.
In October Shane Ryan confirmed his involvement and now McCusker, part of the Irish men's 4x100m medley relay that competed at the Paris 2024 Olympics alongside Ryan, Conor Ferguson and Darragh Greene, has followed suit.
The 26-year-old is now among the 11 swimmers, three weight lifters and three sprinters that have committed to the Enhanced Games, with the first staging set for May 2026 at a purpose-built complex in Las Vegas.
The venue will have a four-lane 50-metre pool, a six-lane sprint track, and a weightlifting stage.
Each event will have a total prize purse of $500,000 (€432,000), with $250,000 (€216,000) awarded to the winner. There will also be $1m (€864,000) on offer for competitors who break world records in the 100m sprint on the track and 50m freestyle in the pool.
McCusker made the announcement on Instagram.
"If you don’t get it, you weren’t meant to," he wrote, with Ryan replying to the post: "Welcome to the team."
McCusker is the Irish 50m and 100m butterfly record holder
Sport Ireland said it was "deeply disappointed" with Ryan’s decision to join the Enhanced Games, with Swim Ireland and the Olympic Federation of Ireland also criticising the move.
"Performance-enhancing drugs aren't just banned because they can give athletes an unfair advantage," a Sport Ireland statement read.
"Many are banned because they can seriously harm athletes' health. Some of these substances can cause severe, long-lasting medical problems. In extreme cases, athletes have died from using these dangerous drugs."
Ryan has said his decision to join the controversial sporting event is financially motivated, though admitted his legacy in the sport will be tainted.
"When I step out into the real world financially, what do I have? Sadly, Olympic athletes do not get paid well at all," he told RTÉ Sport.
"I was on €18,000 for a number of years and trying to compete and train. Trying to have a job doing that, especially with swimming, is very, very difficult. That's below minimum wage, especially in Ireland. I was living in Dublin for a very, very long time representing Ireland for over a decade and sacrificed friends and family, missing weddings."
"Financially this is a huge thing. I've honed a craft for my whole life and I want to take the opportunity."
