E-sports : the new sport in the OG

Always eager to establish its credibility with the general public, the eSport will, at the initiative of the British government, know its first Olympic Games. And these Olympics will take place at the same time as the real ones, in Rio de Janeiro.

This summer in Rio we will not only vibrate for the 100 m in athletics, archery, pitching, pole vaulting or swimming events. We will also be entitled to a few ... virtual emotions. On the initiative of the British government and the International eGames Committee (IEGC) - a committee created for the occasion, the next OG will host eGames for two days. Either the E-sports equivalent of the Olympic Games!

This new competition, revealed on April 6th at the London Games Festival, will therefore serve as a capital showcase for the world of eSports. It should also make the public aware of this universe. The eGames will embrace the entire Olympic calendar and will cover both the Winter and Summer Olympics, as confirmed by the official announcement of the editions of Pyeongchang (South Korea) in 2018 and Of Tokyo in 2020.

Medals but no prize!

The eGames 2016 already have their logo with a pixel representation of the Corcovado. And if four countries have committed for the moment to compete (Great Britain, Canada, the United States and Brazil), each nation will have the opportunity to with compete its "eTeam". On the other hand, no information has filtered on the members of these selections, which will be composed of men and women, all majors. However, in the years leading up to the eGames, each country will set up a series of qualifying tournaments to elect its representatives.

It remains to be seen on which games the teams will compete. Nothing has yet been decided, this point being still under discussion, as well as the support of the tests (consoles, PC, mobile?). Finally, true to its policy of "international game tournament, where national pride is the prize", eGames will not reward the winners with silver but gold, silver and bronze medals. An even more similarity with the real Olympic Games, which will be debatable, as the cash prize is legion in the eSport competitions.