The AP is reporting that the leaders of the Olympic Games are at least considering bringing video gaming on board for the 2024 program in Paris.
The co-president of the Paris Olympic bid committee, Tony Estanguet, told the AP, “We have to look at [e-sports] because we can’t say, ‘It’s not us. It’s not about Olympics.’ […] The youth, yes they are interested in esport and this kind of thing. Let’s look at it. Let’s meet them. Let’s try if we can find some bridges. […] I don’t want to say ‘no’ from the beginning. I think it’s interesting to interact with the IOC, with them, the esports family, to better understand what the process is and why it is such a success.”
This shouldn’t come as too much of a shock; the 2022 Asian Games have already announced e-sports as a medal event, citing the inclusion of e-sports at the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, though as we reported last month, multiple countries had bailed out of this year’s AIMAG e-sports events, citing health concerns, poor regulation, and “governance concerns.”
