IOC Officially Launches Olympics Esports Series 2023

The International Olympics Committee has officially announced the beginning of Olympics Esports Series 2023. For the first time ever, pro and amateur players from around the world are invited to take part in qualification rounds for 18 video games across nine sports including Archery, Baseball, Chess, Cycling, Dance, Motor Sport, Sailing, Taekwondo, and Tennis.

Those who qualify will be invited to a live, in-person finals event taking place at Singapore's Suntec Center from June 22 to 25. The Olympic Esports Final 2023 will be streamed globally across the Olympics website as well as its social channels. This year's festivities build off IOC's virtual competitions that began in 2021 in which 250,000 participants across 100 countries took part.

“The Olympic Movement brings people together in peaceful competition. The Olympic Esports Series 2023 is a continuation of that, with the ambition of creating more spaces to play for both players and fans of elite competition," says David Lappartient, Chair of the IOC Esports Liaison Group. "We look forward to witnessing some of the world’s best compete on the global stage, as well as exploring together shared opportunities and lessons - across health and wellbeing, training and innovation.”

The full programming and ticket details for Olympic Esports Week 2023 will be revealed in April. Take a look at the full list of games below and find more competition info here.

In other news, Kylian Mbappé becomes PSG's all-time leading goalscorer.