Zhejiang University’s International Education Joint Research and Development Center for E-Sports Explores Asian Games Sports Science Support
Researchers and industry specialists explore evidence-based athlete support and interdisciplinary collaboration as China’s national esports team prepares for the Games
From Field Research to Asian Games Preparation
HANGZHOU, China, Aug. 13, 2026 — The “Closed-Door Workshop on Sports Science Support for China’s National Esports Team in Preparation for the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games” was held at the Xichuang Shangsheng Science and Innovation Center in Hangzhou. A roster published by the Information Center of the General Administration of Sport of China names four coaches and 23 athletes across Honor of Kings, PUBG MOBILE (Asian Games Version), Identity V (Asian Games Version) and NARAKA: BLADEPOINT. At the workshop, the International Education Joint Research and Development Center for E-Sports at Zhejiang University (the Center) presented its work in athlete assessment, multimodal research and training review. Xianghe Liu and Zunyu Qu introduced approaches to athlete-state research and emerging sensing technologies. The discussion also drew on earlier field experience: in 2023, Professor Yupei Zhao’s team was invited to conduct a month-long field study at the training base for China’s national esports team ahead of the Hangzhou Asian Games, focusing on communication, training systems and the sustainable development of the esports ecosystem. Teams affiliated with Zhejiang University, Shanghai University and Tongji University, together with Logitech and other participating organizations, exchanged perspectives on smart sensing, wearable technologies, AI-enabled game development and esports peripherals. Participants considered how research and product experience could be aligned with training needs, how athlete state might be understood with minimal disruption and how findings could be translated into evidence for coaching and review. The workshop connected three strands: field-based understanding of preparation, interdisciplinary technical exchange and a shared pathway toward practical training support.
A closed-door workshop in Hangzhou brought together researchers and industry specialists to discuss evidence-based performance support for esports national-team preparation.
From Digital Platforms to Shared Research Capacity
Turning field needs and cross-institution discussion into sustained research capability requires stable, accessible digital infrastructure. The Center has therefore developed two public-facing resources that serve complementary roles in research, education and industry exchange. Global Esports Brain, available through the Z E-SPORTS data visualization portal, organizes esports rankings, policy, research, learning resources, historical records and industry updates in one structured environment. It enables users to follow developments across the sector, compare information from different contexts and return to source materials over time. Esports Aptitude Assessment provides public skill experiences and an entry point to the Center’s project-based multidimensional assessment services. Its activities give users an accessible way to engage with selected aspects of esports-related capability while demonstrating how structured assessment can support broader research questions. The first platform works at the sector level by organizing knowledge and supporting long-term observation; the second works at the individual-experience level by connecting accessible tasks with deeper capability research. Together, they preserve resources and outputs from collaborative work, create a common reference point for researchers, educators and industry practitioners, and make it easier to carry ideas from discussion into future projects. Because both resources are public-facing, their Chinese and English interfaces also support communication across disciplines and regions, helping participants begin with shared concepts before moving into more specialized project discussions. In this way, the platforms are not separate showcases but a shared foundation: one brings the wider esports landscape into view, while the other creates a route from public engagement to research application and, where appropriate, training support.
https://www.esports-data.online/
https://www.esports-data.online/assessment/
From Research Framework to Practical Training Support
The 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 will run from Sept. 19 to Oct. 4, with esports scheduled from Sept. 23 to Oct. 2. Building on earlier field experience, cross-institution technical exchange and the two digital platforms, the Center will develop a low-disruption, multimodal sports science framework centered on athlete capabilities, competitive state and training context. Rather than treating these as isolated technical questions, the framework will connect them through four broad stages: baseline profiling, training observation, training-context linkage and coach-facing feedback. Each stage has a distinct purpose. Baseline work establishes a consistent point of reference; observation follows meaningful changes without interfering with training rhythms; contextual linkage places relevant information alongside the situations in which it arises; and feedback turns research findings into clear material for comparison and review. The framework will be adapted to the different demands of esports titles while keeping the emphasis on practical use, interpretability and athlete-centered support. Its development will draw on the Center’s research base and on advisory perspectives contributed by participating universities, research teams and technology companies. Over time, accumulated experience can help improve consistency across projects and strengthen the connection between research questions, training needs and coaching practice. This pathway will remain flexible enough to evolve as research questions and preparation priorities change. The aim is to build a coherent support pathway in which evidence, interdisciplinary expertise and frontline experience work together as China’s national esports team prepares for the Games.
Cross-institution technical perspectives
Smart sensing and athletic performance
AI-enabled game development in practice
From the Hangzhou Asian Games cycle to preparations for Aichi-Nagoya 2026, the Center is turning long-term field insight into a more systematic capability for training support. By bringing research, technology and frontline expertise together, the workshop set a clear direction: make sports science practical, coach-facing and performance-driven. As the Asian Games approach, the Center will continue connecting evidence, training and competitive preparation through an athlete-centered support framework.
About us
Zhejiang University Yangtze River Delta Smart Oasis?NetDragon Joint R&D Center for E?Sports International Education is an interdisciplinary research platform under Zhejiang University. Adhering to people?oriented values, it gives full play to the university’s interdisciplinary strengths. The center carries out field research, technological innovation and digital platform construction for the esports industry. It unites universities, technology enterprises and industry practitioners for industry?university?research collaboration. For major international events such as the Asian Games, it provides sports?science?oriented research support for national esports teams, translates research outcomes into practical training references, and promotes the sustainable development of the esports ecosystem.
