Pandemic's own Michael “michs09” LaBelle will represent the United States this week in Cologne, Germany, at the World Cyber Games in FIFA, despite placing second at the National Qualifier in Los Angeles earlier this month.
“Luckily I was very fortunate,” says LaBelle, “due to Juanqui not being able to attain a passport, I get to step in to represent my country at the World Cyber Games in the Cologne. Last year at Nationals I placed 3rd, and watching Team USA stand on stage together with the flag and the jackets really influenced my training this year. After FIWC ended I dedicated myself mainly to PC FIFA so I knew I would be ready by WCG for anything they threw at me.”
They certainly threw a lot at LaBelle as he battled through his own teammate Isidro “Novusnaim” Sifuentes, each of the #1 FIFA players of the CGS in the past two years, LA CompLexity's Felipe “Kreegan” Stoyne and Chicago Chimera's Yfran “Eafra” Garcia, before falling in the final to Dignitas' Juanqui. In Cologne, though, the level of competition will be much higher as FIFA's popularity in Europe dwarfs its US following, especially in Germany, where the ESL has helped produce the world's top FIFA stars.
LaBelle isn't new to international competition, believes his foes may underestimate an American.
“I'm pretty excited because I feel like I have a good chance of making a strong showing and surprising many players at this year's WCG,” he said, “I look forward to playing the German players more than anyone else. It's like beating a Korean player in Korea in Starcraft. For me to say I knocked out a famous German player from WCG it would make my experience that much more incredible.”
“All year I have been inside the top 100 on the ESL ladder, so my consistency in results makes me very confident going into tournaments. In FIFA beating the people you're supposed to beat and not making dumb mental errors can take you far in a tournament.”
LaBelle's group will be a challenge he's able to handle. As a member of Group D, he'll come head-to-head with two Asians, Korea's second finisher, GwanHyeong Kim, and Vietnam's champion, Trung Hieu To, but the real difficulty lies elsewhere. Guatemala's striker could prove tough, and Austria's competitor will be strong. Still, Michs09 knows he can advance.
“The biggest key component for me is practice and taking each game one by one, when you get too far ahead of yourself you begin to struggle,” he says, “So I just need to stay mentally prepared and take care of business.”
That's something he had trouble doing at the National qualifier, leading to his loss in the final, but despite the temptations of the foreign environment, LaBelle knows he can stay focused – and hopefully enjoy himself, too.
“I have been to Germany a couple times now and I think there are so many interesting things to do while in each city,” he stated, “I'm not sure what my expectations are yet, hopefully I get to see a couple football matches while I'm there.”
If you'd like to catch some soccer games this week, keep up at http://www.teampandemic.net/ as we follow Michs09's bid for WCG Gold! |
