The Peter Thiel-backed company that plans to stage an Olympics-style event by which athletes are encouraged to make use of performance-enhancing substances is in talks to lift around $300 million, based on a report.
Christian Angermayer, a co-founder of the Enhanced Games, told Bloomberg News that initial discussions have been held with several potential investors, including sovereign wealth funds, for a combination of debt and equity financing.
The corporate hopes to start staging sporting events, which have been dubbed “Olympics on steroids,” starting next yr.
The Enhanced Games, which is open to anyone, won’t test athletes for drugs.
It plans to carry competitions in track and field, swimming, weightlifting and other events.
It’s the brainchild of Australian-British businessman Aron D’Souza, who together with Angermayer led the litigation that eventually bankrupted the news site Gawker after it published a story about Thiel.
Thiel subsequently funded a lawsuit brought by former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan against Gawker over an unrelated story, resulting in the news site shutting down.
Officials with the International Olympic Committee and other sporting bodies have denounced the plans to permit athletes to make use of performance-enhancing drugs, saying that it violates fair play and poses health risks.
D’Souza told The Post earlier this yr that doping amongst Olympic athletes is way more widespread than is assumed.
“I think science is on my side,” Angermayer, a co-founder of Enhanced Games, told Bloomberg News.
He said that every one athletes who take part in Enhanced Games will likely be allowed to take substances which are approved by the Food and Drug Administration, including anabolic steroids and growth hormones.
“They’ve very, little or no risk if done properly,” he said.
Angermayer said Enhanced Games began with around $10 million in capital.
Balaji Srinivasan, the previous chief technology officer of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, can also be among the many investors backing the enterprise.
“My body, my selection, your body, your selection,” D’Souza told The Post earlier this yr when asked concerning the philosophy behind allowing athletes to juice.
“Individuals should give you the chance to make decisions about your body and nobody — whether it’s a sports federation or the federal government — should give you the chance to inform them what to do about it,” he said.
D’Souza said that Enhanced Games will strip out the bureaucracy and red tape that he says is primarily chargeable for the high cost of staging the Olympics.
He also criticized the Olympics for failing to adequately pay its athletes.
The Peter Thiel-backed company that plans to stage an Olympics-style event by which athletes are encouraged to make use of performance-enhancing substances is in talks to lift around $300 million, based on a report.
Christian Angermayer, a co-founder of the Enhanced Games, told Bloomberg News that initial discussions have been held with several potential investors, including sovereign wealth funds, for a combination of debt and equity financing.
The corporate hopes to start staging sporting events, which have been dubbed “Olympics on steroids,” starting next yr.
The Enhanced Games, which is open to anyone, won’t test athletes for drugs.
It plans to carry competitions in track and field, swimming, weightlifting and other events.
It’s the brainchild of Australian-British businessman Aron D’Souza, who together with Angermayer led the litigation that eventually bankrupted the news site Gawker after it published a story about Thiel.
Thiel subsequently funded a lawsuit brought by former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan against Gawker over an unrelated story, resulting in the news site shutting down.
Officials with the International Olympic Committee and other sporting bodies have denounced the plans to permit athletes to make use of performance-enhancing drugs, saying that it violates fair play and poses health risks.
D’Souza told The Post earlier this yr that doping amongst Olympic athletes is way more widespread than is assumed.
“I think science is on my side,” Angermayer, a co-founder of Enhanced Games, told Bloomberg News.
He said that every one athletes who take part in Enhanced Games will likely be allowed to take substances which are approved by the Food and Drug Administration, including anabolic steroids and growth hormones.
“They’ve very, little or no risk if done properly,” he said.
Angermayer said Enhanced Games began with around $10 million in capital.
Balaji Srinivasan, the previous chief technology officer of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, can also be among the many investors backing the enterprise.
“My body, my selection, your body, your selection,” D’Souza told The Post earlier this yr when asked concerning the philosophy behind allowing athletes to juice.
“Individuals should give you the chance to make decisions about your body and nobody — whether it’s a sports federation or the federal government — should give you the chance to inform them what to do about it,” he said.
D’Souza said that Enhanced Games will strip out the bureaucracy and red tape that he says is primarily chargeable for the high cost of staging the Olympics.
He also criticized the Olympics for failing to adequately pay its athletes.
