James Magnussen spent an entire swimming career fighting for clean sport and despising drug cheats.
It’s why it’s hard to fathom the words motoring out of his mouth in an interview with this masthead in the week before he flew out to Las Vegas for the worldwide launch of the Enhanced Games on Wednesday (Thursday morning Australian time).
“The first time you stick a needle of testosterone in your butt, you have to do it in the muscle at the top just above your undie line,” Magnussen explained with a laugh. “I never thought I’d be sticking a needle with testosterone into my bum at any point in my life.”
Magnussen, the Australian Olympian who famously fell short of winning a gold medal in the 100m freestyle by one hundredth of a second at the London 2012 Olympics, is the face of the Enhanced Games.
The controversial, privately funded event has been dubbed the “Steroid Olympics”.
Magnussen, 34, has been on whirlwind doping journey since February last year, when he made the bombshell claim he would consider signing up as the Enhanced Games’ first athlete … if the price was right.
All with the assistance of performance-enhancing drugs.
Although many things didn’t go to plan, the polarising Australian is ready to divulge the inside story of a stunning ploy to take substances in the pursuit of unprecedented human achievement.
“It was pretty wild,” Magnussen said. “I mean, nothing really is out of the norm for me.”
Australian Olympian James Magnussen features in a new Enhanced Games documentary.Credit: Enhanced Games
From clean champion to Enhanced Games frontman
“If they came to the party with $1 million for the [50m freestyle] world record, I would 100 per cent do it.”
With that quote in February, after initially floating his interest in the Enhanced Games on the Hello Sport Podcast, the “Missile” was off and away, despite being retired since 2019.
Things moved quickly. Enhanced Games founder Aron D’Souza, also an Australian, confirmed he wanted Magnussen to be the “star” of a new venture, which would encourage athletes to take performance-enhancing drugs and compete against each other for prizemoney.
D’Souza agreed that if Magnussen could break the 50m freestyle world record he would win $US1 million ($1.56 million).
Contracts and confidentiality agreements were signed as a documentary crew prepared to follow Magnussen’s every move ahead of his journey to the US.
Understandably, there was scepticism. Magnussen certainly had a good time at the Olympics in Paris last year – he didn’t mind a drink at local French watering holes – while juggling media commitments with News Corp.
Australian James Magnussen features in the new Enhanced Games documentary.Credit: Enhanced Games
When Magnussen returned to Australia, he found it difficult to find pools to train in.
“I can’t train with any squads or registered coaches,” Magnussen said. “You also can’t dive off the blocks in pools in Sydney.
“If you don’t have a coach keeping you on track and doing programs, getting times, keeping an eye on stroke rates … you’re very isolated. I was of the opinion that under those circumstances, I wasn’t going to be able to do a proper preparation. That’s why I linked up with Hawkey [former Australian Olympic swimmer Brett Hawke]. He’s not connected to any clubs or colleges.”
After some initial medical testing, Magnussen flew to the US in October and shared an Airbnb with his strength-and-conditioning trainer Dan Malmberg.
Under the guidance of respected Australian coach and Olympian Hawke, who mentored 50m freestyle world record holder Cesar Cielo, the trio got to work.
Again, the issue of pools was a problem.
“We had to turn our training to a public pool that is in my complex,” Hawke said. “It was a four-lane 25-yard pool that was heated. We did that for three months.
“The enhancements were working. He was getting stronger and faster in the pool.”
James Magnussen after taking performance-enhancing substances. Credit: Enhanced Games
The drugs and the dilemma
All of Magnussen’s performance-enhancing drugs were administered by medical professionals, who continually monitored his preparation.
Athletes at the Enhanced Games are not obliged to publicly disclose what drugs they have taken, but Magnussen is more than happy to go on the record.
“I’m definitely allowed to say that I was taking peptides and testosterone, which is pretty much it to be honest,” he said. “We tried a few different things on top of that.
“We used BPC-157, CJC-1295, Ipamorelin and Thymosin. The BPC-157 and Thymosin is for recovery and to prevent injuries. It promotes healing in the body. The CJC and Ipamorelin enhances your body’s natural production of growth hormone. You’re not injecting growth hormone into you. You’re maximising your body’s own potential.
“The testosterone is the superpower. That’s what gets you bounding out of bed in the morning, lifting massive weights and feeling your best.”
Was there any trepidation?
James Magnussen at the London 2012 Olympics. Credit: Getty
“It all felt safe because I did it all with doctors and under medical supervision,” Magnussen said. “I’d go for weekly check-ups at the doctors where they were checking a full suite of health markers. It’s quite confrontational and intense.
“You know what it is? It’s that stigma you have from having been an athlete and hating the fact there were other athletes out there doing this. You kind of get yourself in the headspace of this is a new frontier. It’s separate. It’s pioneering. That’s going to be the mental hurdle for most athletes. That was the most eye-opening part. After that first time, it just becomes routine to be honest.”
The effect of the drugs
Hawke and Magnussen noticed significant changes in the swimmer’s body, coupled with a remarkable ability to recover from workouts.
In his prime, as a 100m freestyle specialist, Magnussen’s race weight was 95 kilograms. In the days after he was administered medically approved drugs, he gained 5kg in 10 days and ultimately ballooned out to 115kg.
“Every time we did something hard, instead of it taking 48 hours to fully recover, he was fully recovered in 24 hours,” Hawke said. “We were stacking workout on workout.”
The results were startling.
“I got jacked,” Magnussen said. “I was probably 10 to 15 kilos bigger than any swimmer there’s ever been. I did the first seven weeks straight, training twice a day. It was 49 days straight of high-intensity work in the pool and gym.
“The increases in strength are insane. I was squatting over 500 pounds [227kg] and doing bench press with like 120-pound [54kg] dumbbells. I was pumping out reps like it was nothing. The strength stuff was crazy. The thing we struggled with was I just kept putting on size.
“I was probably peaking around Christmas. I kept lifting heavier. I just kept increasing the intensity. What I wasn’t taking into account was that my central nervous system wasn’t recovering at the same rate as my muscles. I’d feel strong and have energy but I didn’t have that pop in my swimming. I think I buried myself a bit at times.”
The people behind the Enhanced Games were desperate for Magnussen to succeed.
However, by the end of last year, he had hit a wall. To make matters worse, he had to have root-canal surgery on Christmas day. Spending it alone was not his idea of fun.
Complications around getting the right swimming suits and finding a quality pool for filming stalled Magnussen’s attempt to break the world record and win $1 million.
The Enhanced Games will announce on Wednesday (Thursday morning AEST) whether Magnussen was eventually able to do that. Has he gone faster than any other swimmer in history?
Australian coach Brett Hawke has signed on with the Enhanced Games.Credit: Enhanced Games
How fast can someone go?
Of course, there are caveats to the performances. Wearing a banned suit and taking drugs will always make an impact.
But the Enhanced Games are keen to explore where humans can go.
Magnussen is paid a handsome retainer by the Enhanced Games and has signed on for the first proper instalment. Dates and venues will be confirmed on Thursday.
The inevitable questions will bubble away.
What if a young swimmer now wanted to take drugs and join the Enhanced Games? Does Magnussen care about the backlash?
“Yeah, I don’t care at this point,” Magnussen said. “The main people’s opinions that I care about I’ve already spoken to. Even people within my own circle and my own family don’t necessarily love the idea, but they’ve said they’ll support me no matter what I do.
“I’m actually excited. I feel like this is the fun part now. No more talk …In Paris, when I was bumping into people, they’re like, ‘Oh, is it actually going to happen’? There was a lot of questions around doctors. I’m so glad I did what I did.
“As for people’s opinions on it? I’ve never really lost sleep throughout my career based on public feedback.
“I think for young kids it’s a really important conversation for parents to have with them. It is a moral dilemma that you have to think about. I spoke to Aron and he said, ‘When your 16-year-old kid starts to drive and gets their L-plates, what happens if they watch Formula One? They don’t then just go out and drive 200 kilometres an hour on the roads. The parents sit them down and say this is a sport, this is a high-level athlete and this is not a normal thing to be doing’.
“If you had a kid watching the UFC, you then have to explain to them you can’t go and punch kids in the face in the playground because these are athletes. It’s a different kettle of fish. That’s the way I get my head around it. I think in time, it’ll be an option for elite athletes, for professional athletes, but it will never be a sport for young kids.
“For example, my dad would never even consider taking testosterone. Maybe [he will] after watching these Games and he sees that it’s not dangerous and sketchy stuff made up in bathtubs. It’s prescribed by a doctor and administered by a doctor. It’s done for a reason. It’s not a speculative substance. If guys like my dad knew he could jump out of bed with the energy of a 20-year-old, they’d take that every day of the week. At the moment, there’s a stigma.
“I haven’t had any effects to my health. So my testosterone levels are pretty much back to normal now. I did a full heart screening afterwards. I’ve still been getting my bloods done back here in Australia.”
What now?
“I’m just doing a big base of aerobic work and to get my body weight down,” Magnussen said. “I want to come into my next preparation basically under race weight. I then want to bring my weight up with the protocol. I’ve been running 30ks a week and swimming three times a week. I’ve been doing general conditioning work in the gym four times a week.
“It’s just full steam ahead. I’ve got time to prepare, and I’m really excited to start seeing other athletes sign on.”
