eSports. /CFP
eSports has been approved for inclusion in the Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, announced the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) on Wednesday.
Hangzhou 2022 will be the 19th edition of the Asian Games and is scheduled to take place between September 10 and 25.
eSports was introduced to Asian Games for the first time in Jakarta in 2018, but it was only a demonstration sport back then. This time, it has become an official event, meaning gaming has been recognized as a sport in a top continental multi-sport event like the Asian Games. Meanwhile, medals won in the competitions will count for the athletes' country on the medal table.
Chinese League of Legends players win the gold medal in the Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, August 29, 2018. /Screenshot from YouTube
The Hangzhou 2022 Organizing Committee reported the proposal of adding eSports and break dance to the official program at the 39th Olympic Council of Asia General Assembly Meeting in Muscat, Oman on Wednesday afternoon. In the end, the OCA approved the proposal, categorizing eSports and break dance as mind sport and dancesport respectively.
Specifics including which video games are included and how competitions will take place will be confirmed after further discussion.
Two years ago, five video games – League of Legends, Arena of Valor, Pro Evolution of Soccer 2018, StarCraft II, Hearthstone and Clash Royale – were chosen for Jakarta. China won golds in LOL and Arena of Valor.