Russian and Belarusian athletes may be allowed to compete in the Asian Games, which will feature Dota 2, League of Legends, and Hearthstone, among other game titles. However, international feedback on the inclusion of Russian players has not always been positive.
Asian Games are currently considering whether they will also allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate. The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA for short) announced this decision on Thursday, January 26.
This year, Asia Games will host multiple esports tournaments in many games such as League of Legends, Dota 2, Arena of Valor, PUBG Mobile, FIFA, Street Fighter 5, Hearthstone, Dream Three Kingdoms 2 and some more.
Russia to take part in the Olympics again
This is the first step in bringing athletes from Russia and Belarus back to Olympic competitions, particularly the Paris Summer Games. They must compete “under strict conditions,” which means they can only compete under a neutral flag and name, as has been the practice since the Ukraine-Russia war.
The Olympic Council of Asia believes in the unifying power of sport and “that all athletes, regardless of nationality or passport, should be able to compete in sport”.
The Olympic Council of Asia has offered to give eligible Russian and Belarusian athletes the opportunity to compete in Asia, including the Asia Games.
The 19th Asia Games will be held this year from September 23rd to October 8th in the Chinese city of Hangzhou. Athletes will compete for spots at the Summer Olympics in Paris.
#OFFICIAL | 🇧🇾🇷🇺 The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) invited Russia and Belarus to take part in the Asian Games 2022 in Hangzhou, China, in September and October this year.#AsianGames2022 pic.twitter.com/nR628VrnKT
— ASEAN FOOTBALL (@theaseanball) January 26, 2023
Reactions from the community and internationally
The move to allow all athletes to participate was met with a rather positive reception in the esports community, but there was also international feedback that was not so good.
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy said he had told French President Emmanuel Macron, whose country is hosting the Olympics, that Russia should have “no place” there. Ukraine is trying to rally support against the IOC brokered plan.
China going to allow Russian athletes to compete in Hangzhou Asian Games this September.
If true, this is big.#Russia #asiangames #hangzhou pic.twitter.com/bxX1amrOr1— Jai Hind (@kannandelhi) January 28, 2023
“The IOC has ignored Russian war crimes, claiming that ‘no athlete should be barred from participating solely because of his passport’, while Ukrainian athletes continue to be killed by Russia for their passports. I urge all athletes to make their point of view clear,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter on Thursday.
There was no immediate response from the French government, although other European countries have criticized the IOC. British Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan said the IOC’s stance was “a world away from the reality of the war that the Ukrainian people are experiencing”. In Germany, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser called the decision “the wrong way to go”.