Head of international sports body says he is striving to 'counter' interactive software
The president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has told The Times that he’s finding it difficult to make sport look attractive to youngsters – and games aren’t helping his cause.
“Kids are attracted to visual, interactive forms of communication. It's not going to be easy for sport to counter that,” said Jacques Rogge.
In an attempt to grab the attention of new athletes, Rogge will use 3,500 teenage athletes competing at the first Youth Olympic Games in 2010 in a bid to capture the hearts and minds of younger generations.
Rogge added that he will ask each competitor to link a personal blog to social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace.
“We need to hire more young people” in order to spread the Olympic gospel to under-18s, he said. “If they have baggy pants and pink hair, that's OK.
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“You won't hear me saying sport is not fun - it is. But it requires austerity and discipline. The answer is achievement. You will never achieve in a videogame. It is not really success.”
However, as Next-gen.biz points out, earlier this year the IOC’s exclusive licensee, International Sports Multimedia (ISM), struck a deal with Sega to publish Beijing 2008 (pictured), the official videogame of the 2008 Beijing Olympics - the same contract that lead to Mario & Sonic At The Olympic Games.
The title is slated for release on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC in July.
According to The Times article, the average age of an Olympian is 24, whilst the average age of an Olympic viewer is 46 – and the typical IOC member is 61.7.
Comments
You what?
What a joker.
How about the fact that in this country there is little or almost no support for Athletes?
No, that wouldnt have anything to do with it would it?
No proper training faclilties, no funding, no sponsership no nothing. Most current athletes have to hold down a 9-5 and do their training in thier own time, along with funding themselves.
And as for his point on achievements, he's obviously never played on an XBOX360 has he?
He he he.....
;)
Re: You what?
lol what rubbish is this guy spewing out. If you would embrace gaming instead of trying to fight against it you would realise that creating a good (instead of mediocre) range of olympic games games (lol) then you could tap into the kids which you are having trouble getting into sports.
How many kids have played or are still playing mario and sonic at the olympics? Is that not the sort of thing you want, kids enjoying sport. Maybe it would inspire one or two to give it a go for real.
Re: You what?
And gives the fat kids a chance at becoming a sporting heros...
Seriously though, this guy has lost the plot, if anything drives kids away from trying sports, it's him with comments like "If they have baggy pants and pink hair, that's OK"
...Sounds like a grandpa trying to be "hip" and "down with it" (what ever it is...)
Re: You what?
Never achieve in a video game? It's not really success?
The hundreds, no thousands of gamers making a living off playing video games says different.
Just another ill-informed busy body using video games as a scapegoat for, as already pointed out, the lack of support that this country gives its Athletes.
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