Cover-Credits:
Asian Games 2022 and Chinese Olympic Committee
According to the Chinese state media CCTV News, the 2022 Asian Games has been postponed by the Olympic Council of Asia. The 19th Asian Games was originally scheduled to take place in Hangzhou, China, between 10th September and 25th September. No particular reason was given for the postponement of the event but this announcement comes as China is battling a resurgence of COVID-19 cases. Notably, this shall be the first occasion where esports will be an official medal event at Asian Games.
2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou postponed
The Olympic Council of Asia has postponed the Asian Games to a later date, which is expected to be announced later. Late last month, it was reported that the postponement of the Asian Games was becoming a possibility because of the rising threat of COVID-19 in China. Additionally, Hangzhou, the host city of the 2022 Asian Games, is located close to Shanghai, which has been under severe lockdown and COVID-19 measures in the past few weeks.
What bearing does the postponement have on esports?
The postponement of the 2022 Asian Games will likely have an effect on the selection of players for esports events at the tournament. Candidates are still being selected and finalized for the esports titles present at the Asian Games. In the case of League of Legends, this evaluation criteria will likely extend into the Summer Split now that the event has been postponed.
The selection of the national teams for League of Legends has already created numerous issues around the respective region’s regular schedules. In the case of the League of Legends Pro League (LPL), the Chinese league was forced to come up with a new schedule for its Summer Split to accommodate player selection for the national team. This newly formed schedule made it near-impossible for the LPL representative to attend the 2022 Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) in person. Now, the Chinese squad will be competing remotely from their team facility or the Shanghai Arena.
Likewise, the selection process of the Korean National team for League of Legends also came under fire as the Korean e-Sports Association (KeSPA) was criticized for its poor handling of the schedule and the process.
Esports in the 2022 Asian Games 2022
The Olympic Council of Asia announced that the 2022 Asian Games will feature eight medal events and two demonstration events. The medal events are as follows:
1. Arena of Valor (Asian Games version)
2. Dota 2
3. Dream Three Kingdoms 2
4. EA Sports FIFA branded soccer games
5. Hearthstone
6. League of Legends
7. PUBG Mobile (Asian Games version)
8. Street Fighter V
The esports demonstration events are:
1. AESF Robot Masters-Powered by Migu
2. AESF VR Sports-Powered by Migu
According to Naver, 40,000 players from FIFA Online have been selected and PUBG Mobile has revealed only 26 preliminary players. Now that the 2022 Asian Games has been postponed, the national leagues of esports titles, including League of Legends, will likely have more time to prepare their respective national teams and change their domestic schedules accordingly.
