Pan Am Sports President Neven Ilic
Contrbuted
The Global Esports Federation and Panam Sports have confirmed the staging of the first Pan American Esports Championships in Santiago, Chile, in October 2023.
The marquee event will feature globally renowned multi-genre titles and will be staged in parallel with the 19th edition of the Pan American Games.
“We are proud to partner with the visionary leadership at Panam Sports to bring our marquee event to the Americas,” said Chris Chan, President of the GEF.
“Our #worldconnected community is even brighter today with the news that esports athletes from the 41 delegations across the Americas will have the opportunity to showcase their skills and talents alongside the continent’s greatest competitors as they represent their countries at the region’s most important multi-sport event.”
President of Pan Am Sports, Neven Ilic was equally enthused by the announcement.
“We are thrilled to partner with the Global Esports Federation to bring the reach, power and energy of esports to the home of next year’s Pan Am Games,” he said.
“After more than a year of discussions, we are ready to confirm this innovative addition to the Panam Sports family. Guided and aligned with the developments outlined by the Olympic Agenda 2020+5 roadmap, we are excited to see esports and our diverse multisport program converge in Santiago in October 2023.”
The Pan American Esports Championships will feature athletes competing from 41 nations across the Americas. Both the Championship and the Pan American Games will be enhanced by the GEFestival – a celebratory showcase of the diverse esports culture — and the flagship GEFcon that will convene global thought leaders, stakeholders and idea creators from esports and adjacent industries to share ideas and opportunities for the future of esports.
The GEF and Panam Sports will jointly establish the governance structures to oversee the coordination of the Pan American Esports Championships. The Panam Sports General Assembly was updated on the developments of esports and the successful Commonwealth Esports Championships recently staged in Birmingham during the Commonwealth Games. More information will be shared with the respective National Olympic Committees and GEF Member Federations as detailed plans are confirmed.
Panama to host Women in Sport Forum in historic first for Pan Am Sports
The Panam Sports Women in Sport Commission is ready to make history by organizing the first continental Women in Sport Forum next week in Panama.
Sports leaders from the 41 member countries of Panam Sports will gather to tackle the biggest issues and challenges concerning equality in sports and present strategies to increase representation at every level in National Olympic Committees and sports federations.
The theme of the forum is “Joining the Path for Change” and topics include safe sport, increasing representation, empowerment, best practices, equality and inclusion which will be covered by presentations by leaders in the field and interactive panel discussion workshops.
The Panam Sports Women in Sport Commission is led by its President Alicia Morea (ARG) and members Patricia Lopez (CHI), Fenella Wenham (DMA), Elida Parraga (VEN), Annette Knott (TTO), Monica Franco (PAN), Jane Noel (GRN), Lorena Toriello (GUA), K.A. Juman-Yassin (GUY) and athlete representative Adriana Escobar (ESA).
The commission will meet on May 6 before the two-day forum begins on March 7 at the Sheraton Grand Panama hotel. The complete forum will be live-streamed throughout the world for free on the Panam Sports Channel. The daily program will begin at 9 a.m. local time and conclude in the late afternoon each day.
Many prominent leaders in the worldwide Olympic Movement will speak or join panel discussions during the forum, including International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach and Panam Sports Neven Ilic who will open the forum with their respective video messages.
Panam Sports Secretary General Ivar Sisniega and Panama Olympic Committee President Damaris Young will give the official in-person welcome to the forum. Other speakers and panellists include IOC Vice President Nicole Hoevertsz and IOC Members Laura Chinchilla, Tricia Smith, Maria de la Caridad Colon and Prince Faisal bin Al Hussein, as well as NOC, regional organizations and sport federation leaders such as Marisol Casado, Brian Lewis, Camilo Perez, Mario Moccia, Maria Jose Alcala, among many more.
“We are very excited and proud to organize this first Women-in-Sport Forum to continue our mission to strengthen the voice and representation of women in sports organizations throughout the continent. Working towards greater equality is a constant goal and we hope to see that emphasis at every sports organization in the Americas. I’d like to thank the Olympic Committee of Panama and all of the members of our Women in Sport Commission for their hard work to ensure this event is successful,” said Ivar Sisniega.
Usain Bolt revealed as a co-owner of esports group WYLDE
Usain Bolt has been revealed as a co-owner of esports group WYLDE.
WYLDE (What You Love Doing eSports) was founded two years ago by former JP Morgan investment banker Steve Daly and David Cronin and is based in Dublin, Ireland.
The Irish esports organisation revealed that the Jamaican sprinter will be “involved in a range of activities focused on elevating Wylde’s growing brand”, according to reports.
The 35-year-old Bolt, who retired in 2017, after a career in which he won eight Olympic gold medals, is considered the greatest sprinter of all time. He owns world records of 9.58 and 19.19 for the 100m and 200m, respectively.
“WYLDE is on a journey to becoming one of the biggest brands in the fastest growing sport in the world. In esports, like in track and field, it’s critical to have that competitive, winning mentality,” said Bolt.
“I look forward to working with the WYLDE leadership team to help our players to reach their potential, while also taking care of their physical and mental wellbeing”.
Cronin, a founding shareholder of Irish technology company QUMAS, believes the partnership with the track and field legend will serve to enhance WYLDE global appeal.
“Usain coming on board takes WYLDE to the next level,” he said.
“With his vast competitive experience and Olympic-winning mentality, his guidance will be invaluable as we continue to build professional structures to support the development of our players.”
Bolt, a rabid gamer, teased news of the development on Twitter on Tuesday.
“It’s my time to own a professional sports team. Super excited! Get ready for something big,” he tweeted to his 4.8 million followers.
Munro defeats Sodhi in final of CPL eSports series
The inaugural final of the Hero CPL Esports Series saw Colin Munro of the Trinbago Knight Riders take on Ish Sodhi of St Kitts & Nevis Patriots with the difficulty level of the game turned up to really challenge these players.
The Knight Riders won the toss and put the Patriots into bat and the first over of the final was full of drama with Khary Pierre picking up both Patriots’ openers with Evin Lewis and Chris Lynn dismissed going for big shots.
That left the Patriots 10-2 at the end of the first over, and that became 17-3 when Sodhi was caught in the ring off the bowling of Ali Khan.
Things didn’t improve when Nick Kelly was run out for a diamond duck to leave the Patriots innings in tatters at 18-4.
Sunil Narine kept the carnage coming when he bowled Ben Dunk for 6 and then did the same to Denesh Ramdin two balls later to leave the Patriots at 22-6.
Fawad Ahmad’s introduction into the attack only further cemented the Patriots’ woes as three more wickets fell, two of them soft run-outs as the batting team finished with 32 all out.
It was a small target but Munro was still feeling the pressure. The Patriots could have had Lendl Simmons dismissed in the first over but Chris Lynn put down a tough chance off Alzarri Joseph at mid-off.
At the other end, Narine found the boundary twice before Simmons was gone, dismissed by Imran Khan. By the end of the second over the Knight Riders were 18/1 with 16 needed from 18 balls.
Sodhi brought himself on to bowl and after a tricky start thanks to two wides, he came back well to get Narine bowled for 10.
That left the Knight Riders needing 11 from 12 and a powerful on-drive for four from Pollard seemed to swing things in his team's favour before he was yet another runout.
At the start of the last over five were needed and the Knight Riders seemed happy to get there in singles, but a wide and a no-ball from Sheldon Cottrell also helped.
It was Munro who hit the winning runs, cover driving for two to win the game by seven wickets with one ball to spare in a thrilling last-over finish to seal the first-ever CPL Esports title.
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