Hosts Singapore concluded the inaugural Olympic Esports Week on a high with Singaporean Nigel Tan winning the Taekwondo event in the live finals of the Olympic Esports Series 2023. The 14-year-old defeated compatriot Natalie Tor 2-1 in the battle for first place to become Singapore’s first Olympic Esports Series winner on the last day of the event. The other winner on Sunday (25 June) was Kylian Drumont (R8G_Kylian19) from France, who won the Motorsport event. The final day of the Olympic Esports Week 2023 also featured exhibition matches in Arena Games Triathlon powered by Zwift (Duathlon format), Street Fighter 6 and eFIBA on NBA2K. 

Said Nigel: “It was a tough but good fight. It was definitely tiring, we trained quite hard for this and it was super tiring, but it was a good fight. I think Natalie and (third-placed winner) Wu Jingyu did super well also. It feels good that it was an all-Singaporean final and there was so much support. I didn’t expect such a big crowd, I knew there was going to be a big crowd, but I didn’t think it was going to be like packed to the brim. I’ve definitely thought about (becoming the winner) in my hotel room, I was thinking about it and hoping maybe it could come true. We worked quite hard for this, especially the Refract team who made this all possible in the first place with their system.”

“It’s very cool (to be the first Singaporean winner). I’m pretty tired from all the rounds. Natalie was super fast in the first round, but I think she got tired in the second and third (rounds). That’s when I could get my distancing and try and get some kicks in,” he adds. “There is a lot of reaction time needed and quick thinking. For example, when the opponent is coming in, you have to quickly decide whether to go left, right or just take the kick. There’s so much strategy that goes into this sport. We didn’t really have a set training plan for this. We just did rounds and rounds of sparring and it’s super exhausting. But when you fight certain opponents, you obviously fight different fighting styles so (that practice) helps you prepare for the big stage. The headset also adds some weight that you’re not used to at first, so you definitely have to account for that when doing the spin-kicks and other movements.”

Sunday’s Olympic Esports Series winners at the Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre are as follows:

Sport	Winner
Motorsport (Federation Internationale Automobile, Gran Turismo)	Kylian Drumont (R8G_Kylian19) from France
Taekwondo (World Taekwondo, Virtual Taekwondo)	Nigel Tan from Singapore

“I saw in practice that realised using softs on the first stint is useless. The soft tyre wear is too much and I saw Angel Inostroza start on softs and thought that was perfect for me. So I started with two stints on medium and I knew that soft tyres would work best for the last stint, so I pushed really hard on the soft tyres,” says Motorsport (Federation Internationale Automobile, Gran Turismo) winner Kylian Drumont (R8G_Kylian19), from France. “I saw José Serrano do a one stop strategy during the race. I thought he chose to do that because it worked for him. After my last pit, I saw that he wasn’t really ahead of me so I think I did a good strategy for the race.”

The Olympic Esports Week 2023 was created by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in partnership with the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, Sport Singapore and the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC). The four-day festival showcased the very best of virtual sports with technology exhibitions, show matches, an Education Forum where industry leaders joined panel discussions, and the first live finals of the Olympic Esports Series. These highlights were shown on screen during the Closing Ceremony, where spectators relived the events of the past few days. IOC Vice President Mr Ng Ser Miang also presented the Legacy Trophy to Mr Mark Chay and Mr Roy Teo, the co-chairpersons of the Olympic Esports Week 2023 Local Organising Committee.

A spokesperson from the Olympic Esports Week 2023 Local Organising Committee said: “Over the past four days, we welcomed approximately 20,000 to the Olympic Esports Week. From the breathtaking moments at the finals of the Olympic Esports Series to the excited cheers at the booths across the free to play zone, it was heartening to receive so much support from the public. One of the highlights was definitely when our very own Singaporean, Nigel Tan, won the Taekwondo trophy at the last OES match for the event.

“We witnessed an inspiring display of sportsmanship and innovative technology which embodies what this event celebrates – the nexus of traditional and virtual sport. The success of the first edition of the Olympic Esports Week marks another milestone in our sporting history. We are excited for the possibilities and new frontiers that is installed for the esports arena.”

The Olympic Esports Series 2023 began in March, when both professional and amateur players across the world were invited to participate in the virtual sports competition, created by the International Olympic Committee in collaboration with International Federations (IFs) and game publishers. Approximately 500,000 players entered qualification rounds with hopes of securing their place in the first in-person finals of the Olympic Esports Series. A total of 131 players from over 60 countries, including 18 from Singapore, competed in the finals. Sport and gaming fans around the world can catch up on the action on Olympics.com.

Photo Credit: IOC, Lionel Ng