[ technology ]
Playing t Win
CATHY BONNSTETTER
Esports Unite Athletes and Entrepreneurs
The city of Buckhannon is poised to pop in a 21st century kind
of way, thanks to a town-and-gown collaboration between West
Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) and JesterLine Gaming
Technologies that gives the city a double shot at making its
mark on the technology map—and it all starts downtown.
A New Kind of Athlete
WVWC recently added to its varsity sports lineup with
esports, the sport of playing video games. The first higher
education institution in the state to embrace this new kind of
sport and athlete, WVWC is now recruiting competitive players
with the help of scholarships.
Kevin Wu, the school’s esports coach, recently signed on
eight esports athletes to compete during the 2019-2020 school
year. A graduate of Truman State University, Wu is pleased
with his recruiting success and the caliber of his athletes, who
were chosen for their overall championship gamer qualities.
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WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE
“A lot of the skills we were looking at are not necessarily
hard skills,” says Wu. “The games change rapidly, and different
games become competitive. Adaptability was the main thing.”
Because WVWC is a Division II school, it does not offer full
athletic scholarships. However, esports competitors are being
given the same options as athletes from traditional sports,
which can be as much as $3,000 per year.
While esports is co-ed, this year all the athletes are male.
Wu plans to work toward gender inclusivity for the program
in the years to come. “It’s unavoidable that the demographics
are heavily skewed, but this isn’t necessarily indicative of any
gender disparity,” he says. “It’s just a result of the demographics
for the interest group.”
Esports are played similarly to track and field events—the
athletes can play the same team game or individual games
at any given time. Because of the nature of the competition,
esports easily fits into a college’s sports repertoire and budget.