Olympic Esports Series 2023: “It’s a crucial step in making esports accessible to everyone, ” says Lokesh Suji, Director, ESFI – International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced the Olympic Esports Series 2023, including a total of nine games yesterday. It is a global virtual and simulated sports competition created by the IOC in collaboration with International Federations (IFs) and game publishers. This approach has certainly been taken as a positive one among the eSport community in India. Here’s all you Lokesh Suji, Diecter of ESFI, and others have to say. For future updates on Gaming and Esports, follow InsideSport.IN.
The games that are in the part of the competition are given below:
- Archery (World Archery Federation, Tic Tac Bow)
- Baseball (World Baseball Softball Confederation, WBSC eBASEBALL™: POWER PROS)
- Chess (International Chess Federation, Chess.com)
- Cycling (UCI, Zwift)
- Dance (World DanceSport Federation, JustDance)
- Motor sport (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, Gran Turismo)
- Sailing (World Sailing, Virtual Regatta)
- Taekwondo (World Taekwondo, Virtual Taekwondo)
- Tennis (International Tennis Federation, Tennis Clash)
Meanwhile, esports is going to make its debut at the Asian Games 2022 as a proper medal event, Earlier in 2018, it was there as a demonstration title. The Asian Games 2022, originally scheduled for September this year, will now be held from September 23 to October 8, 2023.
Here’s what popular esports stakeholders have to say regarding the announcement.
Mr. Lokesh Suji, Director, Esports Federation of India & Vice President of the Asian Esports Federation (AESF):
Previously, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had incorporated virtual/simulation versions of traditional sports in parallel to Paris Olympics. It is encouraging to see that the IOC is continuing to embrace esports, and I have full confidence that it will soon be included as a medal sport, just like the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) has done with the Asian Games and AIMAG.
Although the physical aspect of traditional esports game titles such as DOTA and League of Legends may not be apparent when esports athletes compete, the IOC has included certain games like Zwift and Virtual Taekwondo; where the esports athletes compete in a virtual reality environment and have to physically move their bodies, such as cycling or taekwondo. This inclusion will help dispel the misunderstanding that esports does not involve physical movements.
The integration of a broad selection of esports game titles and genres into major multi-sport events is a crucial step in making esports accessible to everyone, regardless of age, gender, caste, creed, ability, and other factors, aligning with the Olympic Movement’s values of inclusivity.
With the official recognition of Esports as a multi-sport in India, we are thrilled to see traditional sports such as chess and motorsports thriving in video game form, thereby adding to the growth of the community and the development of the sector.
Rohit Agarwal, Founder & Director, Alpha Zegus, the next-gen marketing agency specializing in the domains of gaming & lifestyle:
Not only is this a big leap for the Esports industry, but the fact that even amateur players get a shot at it makes it all the more special. That’s a big win for us since it will encourage gamers of all sizes, all across the world, to interact, compete, and grow the esports industry as a whole. Here’s wishing a grand success and a big win.
So, it remains to be seen how things pan out in the coming months and years.
