Esports at the Summer Olympic Games could be Saudi Arabia’s best chance at its first gold medal

The calls for esports to become a fully-fledged discipline of the Summer Olympic Games have been ringing out for decades.

A new breed of “e-athletes” has emerged from a sport that requires cat-like reflexes, laser-targeted accuracy and lightning-fast decision-making.

Yes, the competitors usually sit in front of a screen, rather than showing physical prowess, but their approach to honing their skills is on the same level as many other professional sportspeople. Athletes in esports have fitness coaches, psychologists, nutritionists and more tasked with keeping them in peak condition. As such, esports would fit in nicely with the Summer Games lineup.

Unfortunately, the International Olympic Committee still appears to be perplexed by the sport.

On March 1, 2023, the IOC announced details of its brand-new Olympic eSports Series 2023. And in one simple press release, it managed to marginalize an entire community. There are a few reasons for this. Firstly, the Olympic eSports Series would be separate from the official Summer Games rather than part of it. Secondly, this sideshow, which is to be held in Singapore from June 22, would include “games” such as archery, sailing and chess. Only two recognized video games would make up the nine disciplines — Gran Turismo (motor racing) and Just Dance (dance). The IOC’s interpretations of esports are way off the mark and the news was met with disappointment. Not one of the esports chosen featured in the official 2022 Top 40 most popular eSports chart.

For the uninitiated, games like CS:GO, League of Legends and PUBG are huge in esports and often pull in viewers in their millions across platforms such as Twitch and YouTube. At best, the IOC has been misinformed about what