At a time when some traditional sports aren害羞草研究所檛 being played due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is coming to B.C. secondary schools.

says it will begin the rollout of e-sports, or electronic sports, in high schools this fall, in partnership with Vancouver-based company .

Trial play launches with the team-based strategy game at BCSS member schools.

An initial 害羞草研究所渆xploratory trial competition害羞草研究所� among schools will take place on the GameSeta online platform. The games will be streamed live on Twitch for an online audience , according to a news release sent Monday (Oct. 23) by GameSeta.

害羞草研究所淲ith this partnership and our unique technology, Canada will have its first scalable high school esports solution that priorities Canadian student data and privacy protections,害羞草研究所� stated Rana Taj, GameSeta president and co-founder.

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E-sports is a 害羞草研究所済reat option害羞草研究所� for schools as they look to provide participation opportunites for high school students during the COVID-19 pandemic, said Tawanda Masawi, GameSeta害羞草研究所檚 CEO and co-founder.

害羞草研究所淥ur value proposition continues to strengthen during COVID-19, which explains our oversubscribed waitlist from schools across provinces in Canada,害羞草研究所� he said in the news release.

, said the organization is 害羞草研究所渢hrilled害羞草研究所� to partner with a B.C.-based company in GameSeta, founded in 2019.

害羞草研究所淓sports is a new frontier for BCSS but credit to our Board of Directors who felt it was important to explore every option on how to engage students with their school,害羞草研究所� Abney said in the GameSeta news release. 害羞草研究所淭here is a mountain of evidence to suggest good things happen to youth when there is a sense of belonging, responsibility and community in their school. If we can bring that to students who wouldn害羞草研究所檛 normally participate in school sport, then that is a great thing for our member schools.害羞草研究所�

League of Legends, among the world害羞草研究所檚 most popular video games, was 害羞草研究所渢he preferred choice害羞草研究所� among BCSS membership, Abney said.

害羞草研究所淲e appreciate it害羞草研究所檚 a 5v5 team-based strategy game (that) will offer many of the same teaching and growth opportunities that any traditional team sport would.害羞草研究所�

Yearly, BC School Sports offers interscholastic competition in 19 different activities to more than 70,000 students in Grades 8 to 12.

Nearly 200 colleges in the U.S. and Canada are actively recruiting and offer scholarships for e-sports, the news release says. Also, 害羞草研究所渃ompanies within the esports industry are looking to hire those with experience across multiple aspects of gaming.害羞草研究所�

In a biography, GameSeta said it partners with school bodies and associations 害羞草研究所渢o deliver safe and inclusive esports competitions while also developing problem-solving, teamwork, and communication skills in students.害羞草研究所�

For the e-sports trial, interested schools are asked to fill out and email it to bwhyte@bcschoolsports.ca by no later than noon on Nov. 4. The cost to participate in the trial invitational will be $29.99 per student.