SINGAPORE: Twenty e-sports athletes will represent Singapore in six events at the upcoming Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in the Philippines.
It will be the first time e-sports is part of a medal event at a multi-sport competition sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee. It featured as a demonstration sport at the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia.
Six golds will be handed out for the following game titles: Arena of Valor, DOTA 2, StarCraft II, Tekken 7, Heartstone and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.
Held biennially, the 2019 SEA Games will take place across various cities in the Philippines from Nov 30 to Dec 11.
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The Singapore Esports Association (SGEA) said on Wednesday (Oct 9) that a national selection for e-sports athletes began in February.
The final line-up was then decided by the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) after SGEA submitted its nomination list in May.
E-sports athletes at the Razer SEA Games Esports Bootcamp. (Photo: SGEA)
The Singapore delegation includes veteran athletes such as DOTA 2 player, Wong “NutZ” Jeng Yih and StarCraft II player, Thomas “Blysk” Kopankiewicz.
SGEA also announced that it has partnered with Singapore’s Cybersports & Online Gaming Association (SCOGA) to provide sports science support, to prepare athletes for the Games.
The programme involves conditioning, preparation, and other support activities in the areas of psychology, nutrition, physical conditioning, well-being and lifestyle management.
SCOGA chairman, Nicholas Khoo said the association has been investing in player training and development in the past two years with the support of the National Youth Council and industry partners.
“We are excited to support our players for the SEA Games and hope that many players will take advantage of the comprehensive programme we have put together with our partners to help them prepare for the games,” he said.
Singaporean companies that have lent their support to SGEA include gaming hardware manufacturing company Razer, who organised the Razer SEA Games Esports Bootcamp and provided training peripherals for DOTA 2 teams. The training venue and facilities were provided by Singtel.
E-sports athletes at the Razer SEA Games Esports Bootcamp. (Photo: SGEA)
Last month, Razer CEO Tan Min-Liang announced his company would be ploughing S$10 million to grow e-sports in Singapore; part of this funding will also go toward supporting the SEA Games e-sports contingent.
“SGEA is thankful for the warm support from the Singapore e-sports community, Sports Singapore and the SNOC,” said SGEA president Ng Chong Geng.
“We look forward to seeing our athletes represent our country and are eager to support them in the road to the competition.”
E-sports athletes at the SGEA National Qualifiers. (Photo: SGEA)
The 20 selected representatives with their respective titles are as follows:
MOBILE LEGENDS: BANG BANG
Evos Esports:
Akihiro “Potato” Furusawa
Andrew “ACE” Lim
Boon “OhDeerBambi” Wei Xing Robert
Chong “SOUL” Ru Chyi
Tan “JPL” Zheng Wei
ARENA OF VALOR
Resurgence:
Bjorn “Zeys” Ong
Dabbie “813” Lim Chin Hong
Ng “Elespresso” Ye Lun Renfred
Ong “Yueyah” Jing Song
Lee “Marclaren” Cheng Hiang Marcus
DOTA 2
Wong “NutZ” Jeng Yih
Lukman “Luk” Yusoff Bin Nooraznan
Teo “Tudi” Yao Wen
Wilson “Poloson” Koh Chin Wei
STARCRAFT II
Toh “Lobo” Wei Liang Alvin
Thomas “Blysk” Kopankiewicz
TEKKEN 7
Ruslan “LAN94” Bin Abd Rahman
HEARTHSTONE
Chew “Khaius” Khai Kiat
Benjamin “SGAhIce” Isa Roberts
