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 The announcement by the Electronic Sports League came just weeks
after one gamer admitted to using the stimulant Adderall at a
tournament, sparking discussion around an issue that has long
plagued traditional sports.
The ESL said in a statement on Thursday it would start administering
randomized skin tests for the drugs at its ESL One Cologne event in
Germany in August, a tournament for the first-person shooting game
"Counter-Strike: Global Offensive" that boasts a $250,000 prize
pool.
The ESL said it will partner with the World Anti-Doping Agency and
Germany's anti-doping agency to develop a policy on the issue, and
aims to perform tests at all of its major events once the policy is
established.
The ESL said it has long banned players from using drugs or alcohol
at its events, like many other organizations, but that it will be
the first to test its cyber athletes.
"The growing visibility and popularity of eSports, as well as
increasing prize pools make it not only more tempting for teams and
players to break the rules, but also more damaging to our sport as a
whole when they do," the ESL said in a statement.
"ESL has an ongoing commitment to safeguarding the integrity of our
competitions and providing a fair playground for professional
players," it said.
Earlier this month, Kory Friesen, who now plays Counter-Strike for
the team Nihilum Gaming, spoke about his performance with a former
team at a recent $250,000 tournament.
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In a video interview with another gamer, Friesen said the "hectic"
nature of their communications had been due to his entire five-man
team taking the amphetamine, Adderall.
"The ESL comms were kind of funny ... I don't even care, we were all
on Adderall," he said with a laugh. "Tons of people do it."
The ESL is the world's largest gaming organization, with more than 5
million registered league participants, according to its website. It
hosts tournaments for many of competitive gaming's top titles.
Among the games ESL holds events for is the multiplayer online
battle arena title Dota 2. A Dota 2 tournament in August, in which
the ESL is not involved, has a prize pool of more than $17 million.
(Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by Daniel
Wallis and Mohammad Zargham)
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