Ahead of the delayed 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, the International Olympic Committee has celebrated the start of its inaugural Olympic Virtual Series.
Last month the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed that motorsport would feature alongside four other sports, in the first ever Olympic Virtual Series (OVS). The IOC has partnered with the FIA to hold an Olympic-licenced championship run exclusively on Gran Turismo Sport. Qualifications for next month's World Final began this week, and will come to a close on the 23rd of May.
The World Finals for the OVS are scheduled for the 23rd of June 2021, with IOC President Thomas Bach describing their goal as being to use virtual sport as a means to engage new Olympic audiences:
While this year's Olympic Virtual Series is relatively small, the IOC Sports Director, Kit McConnell has already indicated that should the inaugural series prove successful, they "will look to probably expand if [they] are given the opportunity in the future". This is supported by positive developments the IOC has seen with other IFs:
In recent years, the sim racing world has enjoyed greater exposure than ever before. To see an Olympic-certified series come to fruition is yet another exciting milestone for us to enjoy. Unfortunately, as someone without a PS4, I don't have what it takes to become a Virtual Olympian. We'll pretend it's not the lack of talent that is the real obstacle...
Now over to you, what direction (if any) would you like to see an Olympic virtual motorsport series go in the future?
Last month the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed that motorsport would feature alongside four other sports, in the first ever Olympic Virtual Series (OVS). The IOC has partnered with the FIA to hold an Olympic-licenced championship run exclusively on Gran Turismo Sport. Qualifications for next month's World Final began this week, and will come to a close on the 23rd of May.
The World Finals for the OVS are scheduled for the 23rd of June 2021, with IOC President Thomas Bach describing their goal as being to use virtual sport as a means to engage new Olympic audiences:
“The Olympic Virtual Series is a new, unique Olympic digital experience that aims to grow direct engagement with new audiences in the field of virtual sports.
"It encourages sports participation and promotes the Olympic values, with a special focus on youth.”
The format of the finals is yet to be confirmed, however the nature of the qualification stage ensures that 16 different countries/territories from at least 5 continents will be represented in the finals. Qualifications are open to anyone over the age of 18 from within the 'Sport' mode of GT Sport. More details about eligibility and selection can be found on the Gran Turismo page about the championship.
It will no doubt disappoint the vast majority of sim racers, that this year's championship will be run exclusively on Gran Turismo Sport. However, considering the IOC's understandable preference of partnering with an International Federation (IF), it does make sense that for the first year this is their chosen platform. After all, the FIA has previously certified the 'Gran Turismo Championships' which have taken place since 2018.While this year's Olympic Virtual Series is relatively small, the IOC Sports Director, Kit McConnell has already indicated that should the inaugural series prove successful, they "will look to probably expand if [they] are given the opportunity in the future". This is supported by positive developments the IOC has seen with other IFs:
"Building on the success of their respective events, both the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), along with other International Federations such as the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and World Taekwondo (WT) have confirmed their excitement and commitment to exploring inclusion in future editions of the OVS."
From the sound of things, it could well be that the OVS is here to stay. If so, hopefully it will be in a position to expand such that a much wider platform can be offered to the virtual motorsport world. Not only would this provide opportunities to a wider demographic of the sim racing community, but also further the IOC's efforts to encourage sports participation and engage new audiences.In recent years, the sim racing world has enjoyed greater exposure than ever before. To see an Olympic-certified series come to fruition is yet another exciting milestone for us to enjoy. Unfortunately, as someone without a PS4, I don't have what it takes to become a Virtual Olympian. We'll pretend it's not the lack of talent that is the real obstacle...
Now over to you, what direction (if any) would you like to see an Olympic virtual motorsport series go in the future?