The national final of the World Electronic Sports Games (WESG) SEA Malaysia, held recently within the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, concluded after three days of intense play-offs, with the closing ceremony presided over by the Minister of Youth and Sports, Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.
The WESG SEA Malaysia Finals kicked off on September 21 and saw over 200 participants from five different major titles, namely Dota 2, Counter-strike: Global Offensive, Hearthstone, Starcraft II and Vain Glory.
The champions will fly the Malaysian flag on the Southeast Asian regional qualifiers, where they may compete for a share of the $150,000 prize pool and brag about being the very best within the region.
WESG is a world esports championship tournament originally organized by China-based Alisports. Launched in 2016, it is predicated on the philosophy of allowing players to take part in competitions where they might feel proud to represent their country while competing in the sport they love.
The Minister discussed his vision through the closing ceremony of the WESG National Final in Malaysia, describing his previously expressed intention to ascertain a robust esports infrastructure to advertise Malaysia as an esports leader within the region.
In his speech, he said they intended to proceed with a project along the lines of an “Olympic Village for esports,” which would come with facilities for competitions, education, player and crew accommodation, in addition to production and events.
The minister believes that as esports continues to achieve popularity, the federal government can and will play a key role in ensuring a sustainable and healthy ecosystem.
This first integrated e-sports center in SEA is owned by Agri Mind (the primary organizers of WESG SEA), has the total support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports and shall be named AirAsia E-sports Center after the regional airline AirAsia, which is the primary sponsor of the project.
Bringing the whole esports ecosystem under one roof, this center shall be situated in Klang and headed by entrepreneur Adib Khalid (of Tune Studios).
Agri Mind CEO Calvin Lau said: “We see so much potential among citizens in this region, not only in terms of player and team development, but also the relevant ancillary industries, and we want to create a model that capitalizes on this – working closely with the relevant government bodies to develop the entire e-sports industry across Southeast Asia, starting with the youth.”
Source : https://www.digitalnewsasia.com/digital-economy/malaysia-set-first-e-sports-hub-sutheast-asia
