ChoiSehwan on his competitive drive & Rookie of the Year

Volamel 2021-07-27 06:54:02

ChoiSehwan has been a focal point and familiar weapon for the Guangzhou Charge, dazzling audiences since his debut in 2018. The Guangzhou Charge’s star DPS, Choi "ChoiSehwan" Se-hwan, eyes one of the league’s most coveted prizes; 2021 Rookie of the Year. When given the opportunity to shine, ChoiSehwan is a star teams are forced to properly mark or they risk being upset by the mid-table gatekeepers. Leading into the final tournament cycle for the Overwatch League, the Countdown Cup, Choisehwan briefly spoke to Esports Heaven. He speaks about the palpable energy at live events, his motivations, and where his seasonal goals are focused. Let’s start on a more light-hearted note; when you think of each of your teammates’ personalities what is the first word that comes to mind for each of them? For [Park "KariV" Young-seo] and [Kim "Jihun" Ji-hun], they are always tending to act funny to get attention, for the rest of my teammates, nothing special. Getting into your career, as someone who has been playing Overwatch competitively since early 2018, what does it mean to you to finally be in the Overwatch League? I feel like, for a pro player, the top league is where we belong, and that’s where we start the high-level competition. Although I didn’t get too many chances to play matches in front of our fans due to the COVID-19 situation this year, overall I feel good so far. As someone who is more experienced than their age shows, could you share your favourite memory from your time in Overwatch? It can be from the Overwatch League or even as far back as your old team, EXL-CLEA. I still remember when I was in Element Mystic we used to talk about games and all kinds of stuff. I think that would be my favourite memory, I plan to see them together when we all go back to Korea. Last month you had a chance to play in front of a live audience at the Hangzhou Future Sci-Tech City Academic Exchange Center. Could you talk about what was going through your mind before walking out on stage? Were there any memories that came rushing back before you played your matches? First of all, I want to say thank you to all the fans that came to the off-line homestand event to watch. To be honest, I was really surprised by how loud and exciting [their] cheers were. I was able to give out more than 100% to play matches because of that. Becoming a pro-gamer is extremely difficult and only so a select amount of people can play at a world-class level. Could you share where your motivation comes from? On days where the practice is tough and exhausting, what are some memories or thoughts that keep you striving to become the best? I think, like a lot of pro players, at first, the reason that I decided to become a pro-player is the love I have for this game. The crucial reason that keeps me striving and going is the love that fans give to me. It reminds me all the time that I am not just fighting for myself alone.

You mentioned in an interview that you enjoyed football as a child and that it was a dream of yours to become a football player at one point. Did you play football competitively when you were younger? Not really, I guess I just love football but am not that good at it. I still remember I used to play football with my friends when I was a little boy, and I always watched football games with them. Those are good times. Who would you say, outside of your parents and immediate relatives, was the most impactful on you and helped shape you into the person you are today? I think it will be [We "BlueHaS" Seong-hwan], my coach when I was in KongDoo Panthera and [Kim "Swingby" Kwang-bok], my coach when I was in Element Mystic. I feel grateful to play and grow with these two coaches before. They taught me a lot of things, both in-game and outside of the game. Lastly, as one of the stand-out rookies from this season of the Overwatch League your name has been talked about in the Rookie of the Year conversation. Do you personally have your eye on the award? I definitely want to get Rookie of the Year, maybe a nomination is also fine with me too. Either way, I am always trying hard to get that award this season.

Joseph “Volamel” Franco has followed esports since the MLGs of 2006. He started out primarily following Starcraft 2, Halo 3, and Super Smash Bros. Melee. He has transitioned from viewer to journalist and writes freelance primarily about Overwatch and League of Legends. If you would like to know more or follow his thoughts on esports you can follow him at @Volamel. Check out other sections of Esports Heaven. Images courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment.

ChoiSehwan on his competitive drive & Rookie of the Year

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