LOL. back around 1985 I pumped enough quarters to beat the officially published world high score for some arcade game. I think it was "Food Fight". This was not a mark of honor even in my circle of friends. When did this become something actual adults took seriously?
Esports made it much more prestigious than it was back then I think. A larger portion of the population accepts video games as a legit hobby instead of just things nerds do. That said, I don't think esports have really broken into "polite society" where Elon needs to be. I think he THOUGHT it would impress his nerdy fan base but it's obviously not working so well for him.
Even if his play was totally legit and not obviously cheating, it would violently contradict his claims of how hard he works. Most gamers of the 80's and 90's don't have time to play like we used to anymore. Elon's claims are a web of contradictions. He seems to be banking on the fact that big lies are somehow easier to get away with than small ones.
No matter how much I try to be charitable to him, I keep coming back to the fact that he's really only good at lying. He obviously had a lot of success as a financier and salesman, but that success is consistent with the fact he's just a REALLY good liar.