Queensland university hands out elite athlete scholarships to video gamers

One of Queensland’s top universities has just handed out five $10,000 elite-athlete scholarships — and the recipients barely need to break a sweat.

ONE of Queensland’s top universities has dished out elite athlete scholarships to a talented group of video gamers, as eSports emerges as the next global professional sport.

Queensland University of Technology has awarded five gamers – Zihong Li, Jason Nguyen, Michael Cornish, Justin Tu and Henri Magisson – each a $10,000 scholarship.

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The group was picked after a rigorous selection process which included a gaming trial from more than 200 applicants, with the scholarships believed to be the first of their kind in Australia.

Though once regarded as a hobby, professional video gaming is now a $1.2 billion global industry with about 239 million people watching gaming tournaments online, on TV and in stadiums each year.

The five students will also compete as a team – the QUT Tigers – in the League of Legends Oceanic Challenger Series (OCS).

Henri Magisson, Jason Nguyen, Zihong Li, Michael Cornish and Justin Tu. Picture: Mark Cranitch

But the scholarships won’t just be about gaming, according to eSports co-coordinator Dylan Poulus.

“The really exciting part of the scholarship is that it is an elite athlete scholarship and they will be supported like any other elite athlete,” Mr Poulus said.

“With that comes the support of sports psychologist, a dietitian, a strength and conditioning coach and a team manager.”

Mr Tu said the full-package scholarship offered him and his fellow players a terrific opportunity to dramatically accelerate their ability, and focus on their preparation.

“If you can’t mentally take it, you’re going to crumble in the game,” he said.

“You have to train like an athlete. You can’t just rely on talent.

“For a university to recognise this is a very big step.”

Fellow student Mr Cornish was already enrolled in a Bachelor of Business at QUT before applying for the scholarship.

Having previously played in several OCS teams, he said he hoped to become a professional League of Legends player.

Mr Poulus said he hoped the scholarships would show both parents and aspiring gamers that it was a professional and legitimate industry, with real pathways and potential.

“We’re hoping that by supporting them we will show the younger generations that if you want to be good at eSports you need to be fit, you need to be on top of your psychology and you need to balance your studies,” he said.

Originally published as Queensland university hands out elite athlete scholarships to video gamers