In the last few years, the Philippines' competitive esports scene has been building up its name with many wins in some regional and international qualifiers. The Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Abraham 'Bambol' Tolentino, on Tuesday, Aug. 9, asked the Philippine Esports Organization (PeSO) to build rosters and join in all eight esports competitions in the coming 2022 Asian Games. He suggested scratching initial plans of participating in only four events.
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According to a report from Philstar, eight games will be included in the upcoming Asian Games: EA Sports FIFA Branded Soccer, Hearthstone, League of Legends, PUBG Mobile (Asian Games Version), Street Fighter V, and Arena of Valor (Asian Games Version).
Philippines Esports Is Set to Send a Complete Delegation for the 2022 Asian Games
In a press conference for the Road to Asian Games (RDAG) 2022 Program of the Asian Electronic Esports Federation (AESF) and the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), the Philippines' Olympic President said, "For the part of POC, we will make sure na mayroong entry ang sports on those eight games or disciplines. The deadline for entry is March next year, so definitely we will field all the eight games."
Due to the restrictions set by the pandemic, the Asian Games that are supposed to kick off next month have been moved next year. The Asian Games will still be held in Hangzhou, China, on September 23, 2023.
With these latest developments, the coming Asian Games would be the first competition where the Philippines will send a full delegation for the esports contest. The country poses a higher chance of bagging several podium finishes, especially with their excellent outings in the last South East Asian Games held in Hanoi.
The Philippines' official esports team, team Sibol, is now focused on delivering the same if not better results for the Hangzhou games to be held next year. A year before the competition even started, the Philippine esports team had already partnered with the Asian Electronic Sports Federation in their current operations.
Philippine Esports Association Accepts Challenge of Competing for All Asian Games 2022 Esports Events
In response to the recommendation of President Tolentino, PeSO executive director Marlon 'Lon' Marcelo is very welcoming of the said call to action. According to Marcelo, the national esports organization will be holding a conference soon to plan for a sufficient resource management program that will make sure training facilities are up to their standards. Even more, the PESO executive director referred to the RDAG 2022 conference as a "significant driver" for the nation's young esports fans.
RDAG is a brilliant initiative from the country's premier esports organizations to develop a healthier sports ecosystem in the region by spearheading new esports tournaments and rolling out more programs to support the thriving esports scene in the country.
In a report by Esports Insider, the Philippines, like most countries in South and Southeast Asia, is a mobile-first country when it comes to esports, partly because mobile gaming has lower entry barriers than other forms of gaming. However, its preference for MOBA games is what distinguishes this esports population.
With this, more and more professional players are honed to compete in the said esports events. In the last decade, the esports gaming community helped build a significant market and audience in the region while also bringing home several accolades and distinctions.
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