The Olympics is Hosting a eSports Forum

Earlier this year, the Olympics kicked off early with a special pre-event StarCraft 2 tournament, during which Canadian Sasha “Scarlett” Hostyn managed to walk away with the gold medal. It was a cool little event, but everyone just kind of assumed it was a one-off thing, considering Korea was hosting the Olympics and they’re sort of at the center of the Esports world. So while it made sense to have them do a little fun thing like this, anywhere else Esports just isn’t popular enough to justify giving it time in the spotlight.

Right?

Well, maybe not. Because the Global Association of International Sports Federation and the Olympic Committee have announced that they’re going to launch an "Esports Forum" on July 21st in Lausanne, Switzerland. During this event, players, coaches, publishers, sponsors and more will come together to talk about Esports and all the new opportunities this growing field presents.

IOC sports director Kit McConnell had this to say on the upcoming forum:

"We are pleased to be hosting our first 'Esports Forum', which is a great opportunity for both the Olympic Movement and representatives from the world of esports and gaming to begin a discussion, listen and learn from each other, and understand the potential opportunities for collaboration. The IOC and GAISF are closely following the rapid development of esports globally, and we look forward to a really engaging discussion."

Now, don’t get too excited, my fellow nerds: we’re still a long ways away from having any kind of eSport show up in the Olympics proper. But it might still pave the way for more recognition of the eSports community, and more vitally, more partnerships with the Olympics and other international sporting bodies to bring more visibility and legitimacy to eSports, as well as new tournaments and leagues.

Hopefully, something news-worthy will happen there, so we’ll have good news to report.