Olympic Channel Exec Dir Yiannis Exarchos said that the channel will "look into engaging with its young audience through esports" after the Pyeongchang Olympics as the "rise of competitive electronic gaming can not be ignored," according to Karolos Grohmann of REUTERS. The Olympic Channel was created by the IOC to "maintain year-round interest in the Olympic movement and get young people interested in sport." Esports has "quickly amassed" an estimated 250 million players, more than several of the traditional Olympic sports federations combined. Exarchos said, "As a youthful digital platform we cannot ignore the phenomenon of esports. With the channel after the Games we want to explore the area of esports more deeply." But "any linkup with esports must first address several considerations, including the current gender imbalance in gaming and its violent narratives." Exarchos: "Esports is still a very male-dominated area, 85 percent to 15 percent. Secondly a lot of the content is quite violent or has the violence narrative engrained to it. This is obviously very foreign to what the Olympics represent." He added that the third concern was the "elements that encourage sedentary lifestyle" (REUTERS, 2/19).
