Esports received a huge boost from the Indian government on Tuesday when it was incorporated into the nation's mainstream sports disciplines.
Droupadi Murmu, the President of India, amended the regulations governing eSports in accordance with the authority "conferred by clause (3) of article 77 of the Constitution" and requested the Sports Ministry and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to include "Esports as part of multi-sports events."
Following its inclusion as a demonstration sport at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, where medals earned in the sport were not included in the official total medal count, there had been an increasing desire for Esports to be included in the curriculum of multi-discipline competitions.
Esports fans, however, have received a boost after the President's announcement, which was delivered on December 23, that the IT Ministry would serve as the nodal agency for issues relating to online gaming and that the Sports Ministry must incorporate it in its curriculum.
With Singapore slated to host the first Olympic Esports Week in June of next year, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is also making a huge push to popularise Esport.
This is a significant step forward in encouraging the growth and inclusion of virtual sports in the Olympic movement and in further interacting with competitive gamers.
The Olympic Esports Week, which runs from June 22 to 25, will include the greatest hybrid physical and simulated sports, as announced by the IOC in November. It will also feature the newest innovations, panel discussions, educational workshops, and show matches.
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The first Olympic Esports Week, according to IOC President Thomas Bach, will be a significant step ”in our ambition to support the growth of virtual sports within the Olympic Movement”.
The Indian DOTA 2 squad defeated New Zealand to win bronze in the first Commonwealth Esports Championship in Birmingham in August.
The event will make its debut in the Asian Games, which will take place in Hangzhou, China next year.
Lokesh Suji, director of the Indian Esports Federation and vice-president of the Asian Esports Federation, reacted to the news of its admission as a mainstream sport by saying the community's efforts have finally borne fruit.
"We have been constantly working on establishing the difference between esports and iGaming, and finally, our efforts have been fulfilled. We welcome this announcement by our government, which will open new avenues to pour in more investment opportunities in this booming industry."
"From now onwards, we will have to build proper infrastructure, training facilities and coaching for our young esports athletes. Only a short time until we see esports being placed in the same league as cricket, football, basketball, etc. and having similar fan power, scale and craze," said Suji.
With inputs from PTI
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