New Delhi: The 'Bharat in Paris' marathon commenced here on Sunday to celebrate India's Olympic movement as well as the recognition of Esports by the International Olympics Committee (IOC).
Union Minister of Textiles Giriraj Singh and Manoj Tiwary , a member of the parliament, flagged off the race. A total of 118 athletes will be competing for the medals at the upcoming Paris Olympics 2024, starting from July 26. India's golden boy and Tokyo Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra will lead the Indian contingent that will represent the country at the Carnival of Sports.
The IOC and the Saudi Arabia government have come on the same page and decided to host the inaugural Olympic Esports Games next year.
"The Bharat In Paris event marks the recognition of Esports amongst traditional sports. The run aims to integrate traditional sports with the fast growing Indian esports segment, which even the Government of India has acknowledged recently," a release said.
"The growing opportunity of digital India offers great possibilities in leveraging new sports such as esports," Giriraj said.
Apart from the marathon, an E sports tournament will also be held at the venue with a cumulative winners' prize pool of INR 2.64 lakhs. The runners up will get a cash reward of Rs 1.50 lakh while the esports competitors receive Rs 1.14 lakh.
