The International Olympic Committee sets up a commission dedicated to esports

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced Tuesday the creation of a commission dedicated to esports, in order to further develop virtual sports within the Olympic movement. The Commission will be chaired by Frenchman David Lappartient, who until now led the IOC’s liaison group on esports and who was recently elected to head the French Olympic Committee (CNOSF).

“The creation of the Esports Commission (…) is a way for the IOC to recognize the enormous potential that esports has to attract new audiences“, explains the instance. “The IOC is convinced that virtual sports have the ability to complement and enhance traditional Olympic sports, and can provide new opportunities for athletes and fans to engage with the Olympic movement.said IOC President Thomas Bach.

Officially recognized as a sport in 2017 by the IOC, esports, i.e. video game competitions, have aroused the interest of Olympic authorities for several years. The IOC has thus created this year in Singapore the first Olympic week of esports, a competition presented as a “first stepto bring the esports community and the sports community together.