In collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, Sport Singapore, and the Singapore National Olympic Committee (SNOC), the Olympic Esports Week will showcase the best of virtual sports – hybrid physical and simulated sports – with a four-day festival featuring the latest technologies, panel discussions, education sessions, and demonstration matches.
The centerpiece of the week will be the first in-person live finals of the Olympic Esports Series, a worldwide virtual and simulated sports competition established in conjunction with the International Federations (IFs) that builds on the successes of the Olympic Virtual Series from the previous year. The 2021 series attracted over 250,000 competitors from 100 nations to compete in virtual and simulated baseball, motorsport, cycling, rowing, and sailing, among others.
Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, said of the news, "The first Olympic Esports Week represents a significant milestone in our efforts to promote the growth of virtual sports within the Olympic Movement. We feel that the exciting new structure of our virtual sports tournament, which will feature live finals for the first time, is a chance to expand our collaboration with esports players and offer new opportunities for players and viewers. We look forward to working together with Singapore, which has a history of promoting innovation within the Olympic Movement and hosted the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in 2010."
IOC Vice-President and SNOC Board member Ng Ser Miang stated, "The Singapore NOC shares the Olympic Movement's desire to investigate the growth of virtual sports. Singapore has a history of successfully hosting some of the largest virtual sports and esports events - we are honored to be working with the IOC to make this common goal a reality."
Early in 2023, details, including how to participate in the first Olympic Esports Week and Olympic Esports Series, will be revealed.
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