The International Olympic Committee has decided to add Fortnite features to Olympic Esports Week, which will take place in Singapore’s Suntec Centre from June 22 to 25, 2023.
“The International Shooting Sport Federation’s sport shooting island created in Fortnite has been added to the Olympic Esports Finals line-up. The event will see 12 players from the 2023 Fortnite Champion Series (FNCS) invited to compete on the global stage. A specially designed Fortnite Creative Island, made to reflect sport shooting competition, will put the target-aiming accuracy of sharp shooters to the test and see them navigate the in-game environment as they compete to become an Olympic Esports Series winner,” noted the IOC statement.
Thus, Olympic Esports Week will have an element of real esports discipline, but athletes will not compete in the full version of the game.
After the IOC announced the first Olympic Esports Series, members of the esports industry criticized the committee for competing in simulations of classic sports instead of popular esports.
There is no global consensus on whether esports is a part of sports yet. At the end of 2022, the Indian government recognized esports as part of multi-sports events. However, the new Minister of Sports of Brazil stated at the beginning of 2023 that esports is not a real sport and that she has stood for and will continue to stand for this position in the future.
