Is VideoGaming A Sport? The UKEGI Likes To Think So....

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Is VideoGaming A Sport? The UKEGI Likes To Think So....

Posted by: Aaron Lockard on August 17, 2006 1:49:31 PM

The Uk is planning on making Video Games a professional sport.

Today the UKEGI (UK Electronic Gaming Initiative) is pleased to open its doors on a project that will be close to the hearts of many British videogamers. The Initiative has been setup by a group of recognised figures in the UK's competitive gaming community from several well-established teams and games broadcasting stations in an effort to promote gaming.

They will be aiming to do this by interacting with the media and industry figures to show that competitive videogaming is not only a lifestyle but also a career choice and one that should be welcomed and accepted. If today's youth have dreams of being professional footballers then why not aspirations to be professional videogamers and get paid to travel the world and play the games they love?

Further to this the UKEGI will also be collecting evidence to support an application to the UK Sports Council and Department of Culture in a bid to have videogaming recognised as a sporting activity. With several other countries around the world already having given this status to gaming and many European counterparts going down the same route it is now the right time to follow in their footsteps and do it in the UK.

Their plans have already drawn considerable interest and Supporting Members already include Prize Fight, a Play-Games-For-Cash offering, and Multiplay, the UK's leading LAN event organiser with over 1000 people regularly attending their events.

Philip Wride, 4Kings Manager, "The UKEGI has been setup to champion the cause that not only is videogaming good, but that it also meets the requirements to be classified as a sport. Videogaming is the largest sector of the entertainment industry and continues to grow and as such those that choose to make playing videogames their career should be congratulated and supported rather than frowned upon."

Paul Chaloner, Inside The Game Commentator & Project Manager, "There are many past times and hobbies that have made the move to become fully recognisable sports and with the ever growing popularity of video gaming it seemed only right to work towards having it recognised as a sport in its own right. I believe the team we have assembled to take those first steps ensures that the process will be followed fully and completely and lead to our ultimate goal. In the long run, this will benefit everyone and anyone who wants to be involved in video gaming in the UK."

Paul Sulyok, Prize Fight CEO said, "What is the definition of �sport'? What is the definition of competitive video gaming? I see negligible difference there. The skills possessed by those able to compete at a professional level define such competitors as athletes; and thus their pastime as a sport. The UKEGI are simply working toward mainstream recognition of this fact."