Apr 24, 2006, 4:15 GMT
Singapore - Killing orcs and other online monsters has received the official nod of approval as a national sport in Singapore with a group set up to train players for international cyber-gaming events, organizers said on Monday.
The CyberSport Association (CSA) has been endorsed by Team Singapore, which overseas the national sports teams.
'We are recognizing the positive contribution of cyber-athletes in doing the country proud,' The Straits Times quoted Kelvin Chua, general manager of Team Singapore, as saying.
E-sports foster character building and instil a fighting spirit in youths, Chua said. With a proper system of identifying and training cyber-gaming talent, he said Singapore can hopefully produce the world's best.
Cyber Team Singapore was initially created solely for local representatives taking part in the World Cyber Games tournament held in the city-state.
Under the CSA, the team will participate in other international competitions with funding coming from sponsors and programmes run by the association.
The CSA has been given the go-ahead to revamp a club so that it has a permanent facility to train aspiring cyberathletes.
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