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Gran Turismo Car Racing Video Game Is Now An Official Olympic Sport
Auto racing ‘Gran Turismo’, as well as cycling, rowing, sailing, and baseball, will be part of this year’s first-ever 2021 Olympic Virtual Series.
The Olympic-licensed virtual sports will take between May 13th and June 23, 2021 — just before the “real” Olympic Games starts in July.
Gran Turismo is going to be part of the first-ever Olympic Virtual Sports after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced its partnership with five International Sports Federations (IFs) and game publishers to produce the Olympic Virtual Series (OVS).
According to IOC, the Olympic-licensed event for non-physical virtual sports will take between May 13th and June 23, 2021 — just before the “real” Olympic Games starts in July in Tokyo, Japan.
The Virtual Series will feature five different virtual sports, including auto racing, baseball, cycling, rowing and sailing.
For the Olympic Virtual Series, IOC will mobilise virtual sport, esports and gaming enthusiasts all around the world in order to reach new Olympic audiences.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach said:
“The Olympic Virtual Series is a new, unique Olympic digital experience that aims to grow direct engagement with new audiences in the field of virtual sports”
“Its conception is in line with Olympic Agenda 2020+5 and the IOC’s Digital Strategy. It encourages sports participation and promotes the Olympic values, with a special focus on youth.”
Gran Turismo (GT)
The Gran Turismo (GT), developed for PlayStation systems, is a series of racing simulation video games designed to emulate the appearance and performance of a large selection of real-world. automobiles.
Since the franchise’s debut in 1997, over 80 million units have been sold worldwide for the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation Portable.
The franchise’s latest instalment, the GranTurismo 7, was announced back in June 2020 at the PS5 Future of Gaming event.
