PUBLISHED ONAugust 30, 2022 10:08 AMByKhoo Yi-HangIt eluded him for three straight years, but Chovy finally grasped victory against Faker in the League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) 2022.
Speaking to the media during a Q&A session last Tuesday (Aug 23) prior to the finals, Jeong "Chovy" Ji-hoon recalled his losses against Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok, but also stated that he had a "good feeling" about the LCK finals.
Unexpectedly, his feelings were spot on.
In the recent summer finals on Aug 28, Chovy and his team, Gen G, defeated opposing team T1 to claim the crown as the best League of Legends team in South Korea.
League of Legends (LoL) is Riot Games' competitive multiplayer online battle arena game, where five players on each team face off against each other on maps separated into different lanes. Destroying the enemy's base, situated on either side of the map, will earn the team a win.
South Korea is considered one of the strongest countries in the world for LoL and teams that duke it out in Korea usually rank among the top positions globally.
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Gen G is known as one of the best teams in South Korea and 21-year-old Chovy joined the team in November 2021. Chovy climbed to fame as part of Griffin, a South Korean team, and clinched first place in many tournaments beginning in 2018.
Aside from Chovy, Gen G's main roster consists of Choi "Doran" Hyeon-joon, Han "Peanut" Wang-ho, Park "Ruler" Jae-hyuk and Son "Lehends" Si-woo.
Their win marks the end of a three-year losing streak against T1 and Faker, a wall that they have never been able to surmount.
Whenever they had to duke it out against T1 and Faker, they ultimately fell flat against the titan of the LoL esports world.
Their streak was broken in dominant fashion as Chovy steamrolled T1 in the LCK Summer finals 3-0, shutting them out completely.
His team member Ruler even got a quadrakill, eliminating four of the five members on T1, sending them back to their spawn.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2B1_w0al7LE[/embed]
After defeating T1 in their third game and securing their victory in the finals, the team finally laid their hands on the coveted LCK trophy and Ruler couldn't help but burst into tears.
Faker is lauded for his long history in LoL and the incredible amount of accolades he has earned since he began his career in 2013. Unlike most sports or esports teams, Faker had his team built around him as the star player.
T1's main roster also includes Choi "Zeus" Woo-je, Mun "Oner" Hyeon-jun, Lee "Gumayusi" Min-hyeong and Ryu "Keria" Min-seok.
[embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/Ch2RckjqJBR/?hl=en[/embed]
Faker's numerous victories over other talents on the global stage have even earned him the moniker of the "Lionel Messi of League of Legends" and he has become a household name synonymous with high-skill plays in LoL.
Although Faker is arguably past his heyday at 26, going against him and his team — also consisting of other legends like Zeus and Gumayusi — and coming out on top is no easy feat.
Having overcome T1 and with LCK out of their way, Chovy and his team set their sights on the world stage.
Chovy said in a post-match press conference: "I lost a lot to T1, so I'm very satisfied to have beaten them 3-0 tonight. Now that we beat T1 when it really mattered, I don't think I'll feel the pressure of having to play them anymore.
"As for my career, it'll depend on how hard I work — and I plan to only continue working harder."
khooyihang@asiaone.com
