A Malaysian Gaming Team Has Just Won RM5.6 Million In Dota 2 Tournament
It was the world's largest annual Dota 2 tournament.
By Sadho Ram — 14 Aug 2016, 12:58 PM
While Malaysia has yet to win its first gold medal at the Olympic Games in Rio, local e-sport fans have reasons to celebrate as a Malaysian team called Fnatic has just won USD1.4 (RM5.6 million) in prize money at The International Dota 2 tournament held in Seattle
It was the world's largest annual Dota 2 tournament in which Team Fnatic, comprising four Malaysians and a Filipino, placed fourth
Fnatic, a European team which originally started off with mostly UK players but now comprises mostly of Malaysians, secured their top fourth spot after defeating the South Korean team MVP Phoenix in Round 4.
The professional gamers, aged between 20 and 25, entered the competition as underdogs but exceeded all expectations when they defeated some of the top formidable teams from Europe and Asia in earlier stages.
While they were defeated by US-based Digital Chaos in the semi-finals, they still managed to walk away with 7% of the prize pool
And it's the biggest prize pool in the history of the popular eSports gaming – with a total of USD20,727,779 (RM83,315,307) up for grabs.
Their prize money, which is subject to sponsor deduction and taxes, will be split five ways between the players
They are Chai Yee Fung (Mushi), Yeik Zheng Nai (MidOne), Khoo Chong Xin (Ohaiyo) and Adam Erwann Shah (343). Djardel Jicko Mampusti (DJ) is from the Phillippines.
After they were placed fourth, Team Fnatic's 25-year-old captain Chai took to his Facebook page to express his disappointment
"How I wish this year would be my last. Sorry for disappointing you guys again. (I will) try harder next time," Chai wrote on his Facebook page.
Chai, who has already earned more than RM1.9 million prior to this year's tournament, is a role model for many e-sport fans and is widely regarded as the "Lee Chong Wei" of Dota 2, reported New Straits Times Online.
However, despite the disappointing loss, their prize money is still the highest prize money ever won by a Southeast Asian Dota 2 team since the inception of The International in 2011
