The 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games to be held in Ashkhabad, Turkmenistan from September 17 to 27, 2017, eSports events are highly sought-after among applicants

As part of the 2017 AIMAG, eSports will be held as demonstration events, including StarCraft II, Hearthstone, DOTA 2 and The King of Fighters XIV. The events will be hosted by the Olympic Council of Asia, the Organizing Committee for the 2017 AIMAG and the Asian eSports Federation, with technology support from Alisports and Duo Sport Group.

Much effort and attention to detail went into the design and build out of the registration system, the work for which was allocated to Alisports, a partner of the Olympic Council of Asia and the official technology partner for the 2017 AIMAG. Compared to its predecessor, the system is supported by a new technology, which ensures consistent operation of the system and allows for collection and analysis of information and data about each player. The new system will provide valuable data analysis of eSports players and serve as a reference for the participating countries, aiding them in developing their eSports sectors.

Registration website for players: http://events.esports-asia.org/

All the players must complete the sign-up process before June 30, 2017 and shall be held responsible for the individual information they submit. The registration website is in English and includes a registration guide and a detailed list of the rules on the registration page.

As of press time, more than 1,300 teams and individuals from 25 countries and regions including mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore, Japan, Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia, North Korea, Afghanistan and Yemen had completed the sign-up process. More players have signed up for Hearthstone than for any other eSport, evidencing the high level of popularity for the game.

Dates:

May 10 - June 30: Player registration
July 1 - 20: National selection
July 22 - Aug 6: Regional selection
Sep 17 - Sep 27: LAN events in Ashgabat

National and regional selections will be all held online, while LAN events will be held at the Ashgabat Olympic Complex from the 17^th to the 27^th of September. Further details concerning venue arrangements will be announced later.

Events:

The games are divided into major categories (eSports), sub-categories (game types) and minor categories (specific games), based on competition rules. All events were selected under a stringent set of guidelines, based on their popularity in their respective categories.

MOBA: DOTA 2 (Team event)
RTS: StarCraft II (Individual event)
Card: Hearthstone (Individual event)
Sports: The King of Fighters XIV (Individual event)

In terms of the development of popular e-Sports events across Asia, China and the Philippines have the advantage in DOTA 2 and Hearthstone, while South Korea has proven relatively stronger for StarCraft II. Japan, focusing more on console games, is strongest in the development of events for The King of Fighters XIV.

Selection of regional player representatives:

During the national selection, the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of each country or region was allowed to select no more than two players in each game (NOC has the right to choose which games they will attend) and must send the full list to the Asian eSports Federation at [email protected] before July 20.

The players selected by each country or region will enter regional trials between July 22 and August 6. The number of players assigned to regional trials is shown below. Players from the host country Turkmenistan can also participate in the corresponding regional trial.

Olympic Council of Asia and Alisports become strategic partners

The Olympic Council of Asia and Alisports announced a strategic partnership in April, whereby eSports will be added to the 2017 Ashgabat Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games and the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games. The two partners also intend to bring eSports to the official sports program of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games.

Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, President of the Olympic Council of Asia, said, "The Olympic Council of Asia is committed to the legacy, development and constant evolution of Asian sports. The Council is also extremely pleased with the strategic partnership with Alisports. We look forward to further collaboration with Alisports in regards to digital sports concepts along with sporting events. We have confidence in the extensive organizing capabilities of Alisports, while their experience in eSports will assist us in developing all sports."

Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20170612/1871542-1-a
Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20170612/1871542-1-b