Will E-Sports Be The Newest Olympic Event?

E-sports combine athletics with gaming skills to create a new, highly-involved gaming experience, and members of this industry hope to break down the barriers of gaming.

What Happened

A late July forum hosted by the International Olympic Committee and Global Association of International Sports Federations featured more deliberation on the inclusion of e-sports and other gaming industries in the Olympics.

One of the main takeaways from the e-sports forum in Lausanne, Switzerland is that no organization exists to represent e-sports globally. This sparked a discussion on whether e-sports have the capacity to potentially align with Olympic values, rules and regulations, and raised the question of whether they'd be considered sports in the first place.  

Why It’s Important

“The E-Sports Forum was a unique opportunity to hear from a wide variety of stakeholders, including some of the top players themselves,” IOC Sports Director Kit McConnell said, according to Variety.

“There was a consensus that future collaboration will be based on ensuring that any activity supports and promotes the Olympic values; and while the goal was not to develop a pathway towards the inclusion of e-sports on the Olympic program, we have a strong plan for ongoing dialogue and engagement, and are in a strong position to coordinate and support the wider engagement of the Olympic Movement with e-sports.”

The rising popularity of e-sports is leading to developments such as specific law groups that specialize in issues tied to the industry, and some medical professionals offer support to e-sports players. Some who attended the forum said e-sports could be integrated into the Olympics as early as 2024.  

What’s Next

The IOC and the GAISF said they plan to create an e-sports liaison group in order to continue the discussion.

Related Links:

'It's Only Going To Continue To Grow': The Economics Of E-Sports

There's A Lot Of Capital In The Gaming Industry, And It's Not Just In E-Sports

Photo by Jakob Wells via Wikimedia.