Jakarta – The National Sports Conference of the Indonesian Esports Executive Board (PB ESI) unanimously elected Police General (Ret.) Prof. Dr. Budi Gunawan, SH, M.Sc., Ph.D., PSM as the general chairman of PB ESI for the 2024-2029 period. All administrators present at the PB ESI National Sports Conference agreed that Budi Gunawan would continue his leadership as the general chairman of PB ESI for the next period.
This was conveyed by the leader of the PB ESI Musornas, Kartikajaya, when deciding by acclamation Budi Gunawan as the elected General Chairperson of PB ESI for the 2024 – 2029 period, at the Grand Ball Room Intercontinental Jakarta, Sunday 6/10/2024.
According to him, the decision was the aspiration of all ESI Provincial Chairmen.
“Therefore, it was decided that Police General (Ret.) Prof. Dr. Budi Gunawan was appointed as the General Chairperson of PB ESI 2024-2029,” he said.
In his speech at the PB ESI National Sports Conference, Budi Gunawan expressed his gratitude for being entrusted again by all administrators as the General Chairperson of PB ESI for the 2024-2029 period.
The global reach of Esports is currently growing rapidly, the latest data shows that the Esports audience has reached more than 577 million people in 2024, he said.
In Indonesia, Esports as a new sport has shown significant development. With the ecosystem that has been formed, we have succeeded in changing the negative views of society about games, he added.
Now with the development of Esports, playing games can be a promising career choice, because it can make money and achieve at the international level, concluded Budi Gunawan.
Just like other professional sports, becoming an Esports athlete also requires hard work, team and coach support, teamwork, and good physical and mental health, he said.
In the era of the PB Esports Indonesia management for the 2020-2024 period, many achievements and accomplishments have been achieved, both at the national and international levels, he said.
The first thing to note is the development of the organization and ecosystem of esports in Indonesia, we have a management of 9,280 people starting from the central level to the district level. We have also included e-sports in Law Number 11 of 2022 concerning sports as an acknowledgment that e-sports is one of the branches of achievement sports, explained Budi Gunawan.
From 6 to 13 October 2024, Esports will also be competed in the National Paralympic Week (peparnas) which will take place in the city of Solo, Central Java. This means that in Esports, anyone, with any condition, has an equal opportunity to excel and compete, he said.
Another important note is the international recognition of PB ESI as the only official Esports parent organization representing Indonesia in the international Esports federation. This is the result of the hard work of Indonesian Esports diplomacy, which is increasingly recognized as a global force, he said.
Second, athlete development and sports achievements, the management has created an e-sports academy for junior high, high school, and college levels with the Garudaku Academy. Currently, there are 84 high schools with Esports extracurricular activities and 19 universities with e-sports SMEs. Which will be a favorite extracurricular activity for gen-z and gen-alpha, said Budi Gunawan.
We have created training for national-scale accredited coaches and referees. Currently we have 73 referees and 123 Esports coaches who are accredited up to the international level, he said.
PB ESI also continues to support athletes by participating in the CPNS program from the government through the Ministry of Youth and Sports, as a form of appreciation for those who excel in official championships between countries, he concluded.
Another thing we should be proud of, amidst the world’s geopolitical tensions, Esports has played a unifying role. The Esports community has united various cultures and backgrounds in one platform. The existence of online communities and streaming services has created a new form of entertainment for the young generation of Indonesia that is connected to the global youth community, he explained.
On the same occasion, Deputy Chairman 3 of KONI, Major General TNI Purn Andri Sutarno expressed his appreciation, gratitude and highest respect to PBESI who have jointly made the 21st Aceh North Sumatra National Sports Week a success, a series of sports matches.
The first time in the history of the PON to be carried out smoothly and well, Esports has succeeded in making history at the 21st PON in Aceh, North Sumatra in 2024 as the largest PON competing in 65 sports and attended by 38 provinces, he said.
In addition, pride is also because PON 21 witnessed the revival of the Indonesian gaming industry where esports presents one of the local games, namely Battle of Guardians, he added.
This is an achievement of PBESI under the leadership of General Budi Gunawan as the first general chairman in PBSI history, he said.
I express my highest appreciation and gratitude to Mr. Budi Gunawan and his staff, especially the Indonesian Sport Executive Board for the first term of office. Who have greatly advanced the history of sports in the country, he said.
The existence of this national coordination meeting is expected to produce an evaluation so that Indonesia can achieve more in addition to improving the country’s Esports industry, he said.
The solidity of administrators at the national, provincial, regional and community levels must continue to improve in quality through inclusive collaboration programs, ongoing competitions and quality training must also continue to be realized, he stressed.
Meanwhile, Expert Staff for Sports Culture of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Hamka Hendra Noer, said that this national coordination is an important momentum for the future of Indonesian Esports.
As part of sports, Esports has made a special history for the Indonesian nation starting from the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta as an exhibition sport, he said.
Esports has registered itself as a sport that is competed in international sporting events from the 2019 Manila Sea Games as an exhibition to the 2021 Vietnam Sea Games and the 2023 Cambodia Sea Games, he explained.
As an official branch that competes for digging and Esport Indonesia continues to show extraordinary achievements. Once specifically at the 2023 Cambodian Sea Games, Indonesia managed to emerge as the overall champion for the Esport branch, this of course adds to the pride, he concluded.
In the international arena at the 2022 international Esports world championship in Bali, Indonesia also emerged as the champion. This is all proof that the development of esports achievements through the management of PB Esport Indonesia under the leadership of General Budi Gunawan has been successful, he concluded.