The Paris Olympics 2024 is just a few days away. The multinational event will have around 10,000 athletes. The athletes in Paris will compete in 329 events in 32 sports. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has introduced Esports. It was announced that the inaugural 2025 Olympic Esports Games would be held in Saudi Arabia. There have been a lot of controversies going on regarding the inclusion of the sport for the upcoming year.
It has also been decided that sports might be introduced in the 2028 Summer Olympics. However, the official confirmation of the same has yet to be announced. There has been discussion that it might threaten the integrity of the multination event. The argument has been ongoing as some believe that the lack of physical and traditional athletic components that define Olympic sports will be missing.
As of now, all the sports in the Olympics have been physical and athletic events. Gaming over the years has been an upcoming sport. It has been seen as one of the major sports in some countries as well. However, the inclusion in the Olympics or hosting of a separate event under the association of the IOC has been a major point of discussion for the fans.
Will Esports help the Olympics
How can it help the Olympics in upcoming years? Between the negatives, there are some positives as well. Gaming reflects the modern digital era and can attract a younger audience. A lot of the young audience does not follow the major event properly. But Gaming or Esports has been popular among the young fans. So the youngsters will gain more interest and try to make themselves better in the gaming platform to represent their countries some days.
But the question comes in will it hamper the integrity or not? The Esports tournaments are heavily driven by commercial interests and sponsorships from technology companies and gaming corporations. So if it is included that might harm the other sports as they might get less attention than of the gaming events.
