If a free pass on PEDs and a million-dollar check could not push an athlete to break Usain Bolt’s sprint record, is there anything that possibly could? The CEO of Enhanced Games believes he has the answer. Even as Enhanced’s stock price fell by over 50% when the New York Stock Exchange opened on Tuesday, Maximilian Martin’s solution is to jack up the incentive by a massive 900%.

It’s been nearly 17 years since Usain Bolt set a 100m world record on August 16, 2009, and no one has come close to breaking it. Even Bolt’s fastest time after that was 0.05 seconds slower. But when the Enhanced Games debuted on May 24 with rules allowing performance-enhancing drugs, many believed the impossible could finally happen with the men’s 100m, which was originally attached to a $1 million “World Record Bonus.” Now, following the failed hype where only one world record was bettered, Enhanced Games has upped the ante.

The controversial competition made headlines on May 27, announcing that any athlete who manages to beat Usain Bolt’s legendary 9.58-second sprint will be handed $10 million at the 2027 Enhanced Games. The amount of money offered is one of the largest in track and field history for a single performance, $9,850,000 more than the winner’s purse for the upcoming World Athletics Ultimate Championship.

In a letter to the shareholders on his Substack, Enhanced Games CEO Maximilian Martin admitted the event failed to attract the level of sprinting performances organizers had hoped for.

“And to our sprinting fans: we hear you. Our inaugural sprinting events were not to the standard we aspire to and we know why. Top sprinters are among the highest-paid athletes in athletics – the opportunity cost of joining Enhanced has been higher for them than for athletes in other sports. We need to change that equation.”

Clean athletes beat enhanced athletes in three different events

The six-hour event saw just one world record timing bettered. This came when Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev won his 50m freestyle race with a time of 20.81 seconds, 0.07 seconds faster than Cameron McEvoy’s world record time.

Non-enhanced athletes won three events over other competitors who were using banned substances. One of these came in the pool, where Hunter Armstrong won the 50m backstroke. The other two came on the track, both in the 100m event.

Tristan Evelyn won the women’s 100m in 11.25, and Fred Kerley won the men’s 100m in 9.97 seconds, 0.08 seconds faster than enhanced athlete Emmanuel Matadi. His time was 0.16 seconds slower than his bronze timing in Paris 2024, and, interestingly, 0.06 seconds slower than Oblique Seville’s 9.91 seconds last-place finish.

The poor sprint times were even more shocking given all the hype. Enhanced Games executives had been hinting at a record being broken by Usain Bolt in private testing for months. In one interview with LetsRun.com in April 2026, D’Souza, the founder, hinted that an athlete had broken the legendary record.

“Yes, he did break the world record, no, we did not time it with a sundial, and yes, we have video, but we’re not showing you for … uh … reasons.”

Earlier, in January 2024, the Enhanced Games posted an Instagram video of an anonymous sprinter with his face obscured.

“I am the fastest man in the world. I’ve broken Usain Bolt’s world record, but you’ve never heard of me. I am a proud enhanced athlete.”

There is one moment in the video where the timer reads 9.49 seconds, just shy of a tenth of a second off the official world record held by Usain Bolt. However, once the actual competition started in Las Vegas, things were so underwhelming that even Bolt appeared to react to the hype afterward.

Usain Bolt mocked Fred Kerley after the Enhanced Games sprint falls short

Before the race, Kerley confidently predicted that Bolt’s iconic 9.58-second world record would finally fall at the Enhanced Games. The two-time 100m medalist appeared confident before the event, despite opting to run clean.

“I don’t need it,” Kerley said. “God gave me fast feet for a reason. I’m here to showcase my talent. You still have to work. Drugs aren’t going to give you an advantage if you’re not putting the work in.”

When the final arrived, however, the result fell far short of expectations. Kerley earned the $250,000, but his time was nowhere near Usain Bolt’s 9.58. It was also slower than his Tokyo Olympics silver medal timing of 9.84 seconds.

The disappointing performance quickly sparked reactions online. Bolt himself also appeared to react after Kerley’s comments resurfaced online. Responding with a brief one-word reply on social media, the sprint legend simply wrote: “Ok.”

After the race, Kerley blamed the chaotic setup and repeated interruptions for preventing faster times.

“A lot of false starts, a lot of jumping, a lot of people who didn’t want to run their heats. Got to do better than that. I’m ready to run fast.”

It remains to be seen if the $10 million results in Bolt’s iconic 9.58 falling.