'Esports will never be a part of the Olympics,' says IOC chief Thomas Bach

What's the story?

In a world where the Olympics is considered the pinnacle of sporting folklore, there is some bad news for esports and gaming enthusiasts dreaming of seeing their beloved sport on the biggest sporting forum.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach, who is in India as we speak, quickly shut down rumours about the inclusion of esports in the Olympics, claiming that the violence portrayed in the games was against the values and principles of the Olympic Committee.

"The red line would be, e-games, which are these games involving killing, or which have the promotion of violence or any kind of discrimination, they can never be a part of the Olympic movement because they would contradict our values and our principles," he said.

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Fans have been clamouring for an inclusion of gaming on the Olympic level especially since regular tournaments have garnered a lot of mainstream attention with esports even considered by many to be the future of elite sports.

The heart of the matter

Despite announcing his decision on esports, Bach went on to say that the Olympic Committee is constantly on the lookout for a new sport that could be inculcated into the Games

"The Olympic Games are always open to new sports without forgetting our roots and if you don't open up to new sports that the younger generation practices, then you can lose relevance. But the question of e-games is completely different," he said.

"We think that a competitive e-games player shows physical activity in terms of training, long-term concentration. This physical activity can be compared to some of the other traditional sports. But in order to be recognised by the IOC, by the Olympic movement, it is not enough just to show physical activity," he continued. "This physical activity must also be in compliance with the venue of the Olympic games. Therefore, we have to draw a very clear red line in this respect too."

What's next?

With Olympic inclusion a clear no-no, professional gamers can continue to be a part of several other major gaming tournaments around the world which could be the main attraction for years to come.

Author's take

It is a big blow to the hopes and dreams of elite gamers around the world that their sport will never see the light of the Olympic Games, but for many, this remained a distant dream and one that may not necessarily have been a realistic one to begin with.