markeloff to make appearance in charity showmatch

The Ukrainian will play his first HLTV-featured game since the FACEIT London Minors over four years ago.

Yegor "⁠markeloff⁠" Markelov is set to return to the server for the first time since 2018 to compete in a two-team charity tournament versus Ioann "⁠Edward⁠" Sukhariev and his Counter-Strike-rapper mix.

The event will play out on September 23 and feature just a single best-of-three, starting at 18:30 , with the maps being Dust2, Inferno, and Mirage. The tournament will have ~$11,000 up for grabs, with the entirety of the prize pool being donated to the Ukrainian Charity Fund.

Spectators will also be able to donate directly to the charity throughout the duration of the showmatch, with funds being raised to support both the Ukrainian armed forces as well as people who were displaced following Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

markeloff was a founding member of the Natus Vincere lineup that first entered CS:GO all the way back in 2013 when the roster finally made the long-awaited switch from Counter-Strike: 1.6. The Ukrainian made a surprise departure from the organisation in July of that year, going on to join Astana Dragons, where he took home his first and only trophy of CS:GO at TECHLABS Cup 2013.

markeloff also put up strong numbers individually throughout the year, sporting a 1.08 rating in 2013, enough to nab himself a spot at 15th in HLTV's Top 20 players of 2013. Later in his career he represented HellRaisers and FlipSid3, playing alongside Oleksandr "⁠s1mple⁠" Kostyliev in both organisations.

The Ukrainian veteran's first choice of a teammate for the event comes in the form of Stefan "⁠1mpala⁠" Ailazian, the pair being the only Counter-Strike players on the roster. Rounding out the lineup are Dota 2 player Bogdan "Iceberg" Vasylenko, and footballers Yevhen Konoplyanka and Oleksandr Zinchenko, who play for MKS Cracovia and Arsenal, respectively.

Edward, on the other hand, was one of Natus Vincere's longest-serving members, representing the organisation for the majority of his CS:GO career. The Ukrainian enjoyed a large amount of success in the seven years he spent with the side, taking home 15 trophies, notably BLAST Pro Series Copenhagen 2018 and ESL One Cologne 2018, alongside making three Major grand final appearances.

Edward's roster is more Counter-Strike-centric than markeloff's, the core being made up of Daniil "⁠headtr1ck⁠" Valitov and his former Natus Vincere teammate in Arseny "⁠ceh9⁠" Trynozhenko. The remainder of the squad is built around members of the music industry, with the Ukrainian veteran recruiting rappers KYIVSTONER and Lil Morty.

markeloff's Team and Edward's Team are as follows: