MUMBAI, October 14, 2023 – An Olympics for Esports is in the works, the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach revealed this “groundbreaking” move during today’s Opening Ceremony of the 141st IOC Session taking place in Mumbai, India, in the presence of the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.
While noting that there are three billion people playing esports and gaming around the world, the IOC President said: “What is even more relevant to us: a majority of them are under the age of 34.”
OLYMPIC ESPORTS GAMES He then announced: “I have asked our new IOC Esports Commission to study the creation of Olympic Esports Games.”
The IOC’s first engagement with esports was in 2018, with the organisation of the Esports Forum in 2018 in Lausanne. This was followed by the set-up of an Esports Liaison Group to have a platform to engage with all the esports stakeholders. Then in 2021, the IOC developed the Olympic Virtual Series, the Olympic body’s first pilot venture in esports.
Bach explained that the IOC chose “a holistic approach” towards esports to “allow us to be active in the esports space while staying true to our values that have guided us for over a century.”
He continued: “With respect to esports, our values are and remain the red line that we will not cross. Our crystal-clear position is gaining more and more respect also in the esports community. One of the leading publishers even adapted their popular game to conform fully with our Olympic values – so that players shot at targets, not at people.”
OLYMPIC ESPORTS WEEK The inaugural Olympic Esports Week took place in Singapore between 22 and 25 June 2023 and Bach said the event “successfully brought together the Olympic and the esports communities.” While the series marked a significant milestone for the esports industry, it also attracted criticism due to the omission of established titles in the gaming community like Dota 2, League of Legends and Counter-Strike. However, the IOC has always made it clear that their priority is to support and promote virtual sports that align with the Olympic values. In explaining how the games for the first Olympic Esports Week were selected, the IOC said “The Olympic Games has always offered a diverse programme… In order to build a similarly diverse programme for the Olympic Esports Series 2023, we have partnered with International Federations (IFs), who in turn propose game developer partnerships.”
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Picture: IOC President Thomas Bach speaking at the Opening Ceremony of the IOC Session in Mumbai, in the presence of Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi (Photo by IOC/Greg Martin)