SINGAPORE – From taekwondo champions to sailors and e-racers, participants at the Olympic Esports Week in Singapore gave the inaugural event their endorsement on Sunday, citing the positive impact on their respective sports.
Over 100 athletes competed across 10 virtual sports – including sailing, baseball and tennis – at the Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre.
Two-time Olympic taekwondo champion Wu Jingyu, 36, of China relished the chance to return to competitive action – she had retired after the 2020 Tokyo Games.
She acknowledged that it was different from what she was used to, but added that it was an opportunity to reach a different demographic of fans.
Wu, who won bronze, said: “Even though I lost, it was a learning experience. I decided to give it a try and when the invitation came to participate in the competition, I wanted to see what it was about.
“It’s a good way to appeal to a younger audience and generate more interest.”
The Olympic Esports Week comes two years after the Olympic Virtual Series, which attracted over 250,000 online contestants from across 100 countries. It is part of the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) bid to remain relevant to young people and embrace technological advances.
The IOC recognised e-sports as a “sports activity” in 2017 and it will be a medal event at a major multi-sports Games for the first time at the Asian Games in Hangzhou starting on Sept 23.
The Olympic Esports Week, which could be held annually, attracted 20,000 attendees over four days in Singapore.
Singapore e-racer Ar Muhammad Aleef Mohamed Rafik, who competed in the Gran Turismo 7 motorsport event won by Frenchman Kylian Drumont, sees the multi-sport event as an opportunity to increase fans’ exposure to various sports.
He said: “Motorsport is physically, and mentally demanding, I hope it gets through to more people and we’ll have more opportunity to race against the best in the world.”
For Singaporean taekwondo exponent Nigel Tan, who was the champion on Sunday, the virtual format allowed athletes to compete against opponents they would usually not face.
The 14-year-old said: “It feels quite nice because there are talents you won’t ever meet because we’re in different weight classes, of different genders, so with all these new talents, it will bring taekwondo really far in the future.”
While 2017 taekwondo world champion Nur Tatar, 30, enjoyed learning new tricks, she said it would take some time to get used to competing virtually.
Not everyone was on board with the Olympic Esports Week, however, as its line-up drew criticism for omitting big gaming titles like Valorant and Dota 2.
In the closing ceremony, IOC vice-president Ng Ser Miang of Singapore said: “These past three days have been a historic milestone, a celebration of the best of virtual sport and e-sports. We have built bridges between the physical and virtual worlds of sport.
“We have seen sports and e-sport communities meet and share ideas. Together, we have discussed opportunities and ideas.”
