Seven captains unite to protest BLAST-Astralis decision in open letter

Captains of seven teams participating at BLAST Premier Fall Final have come together to protest BLAST's decision to allow Astralis an emergency substitute amid suspicious circumstances.

Over the course of the media day at the BLAST Premier Fall Final, several in-game leaders sat out their usual obligations in an apparent stance against BLAST granting Astralis an emergency substitution amid suspicious circumstances.

The tournament organizer allowed the Danish team to swap out Alexander "⁠br0⁠" Bro for Casper "⁠cadiaN⁠" Møller past the typical roster deadline on a medical emergency ruling after Astralis claimed br0 was "unfit to play." This came in contrast with br0's agent saying he's "fully healthy and ready to perform."

Since the decision the organizers said they do not ask teams for doctors' notes and "take teams' accounts at face value," apparently admitting they did not do due diligence in verifying Astralis' claims. In the statement, BLAST said they are seeking further clarification from Astralis and are ready to look into sanctions or penalties if deemed needed.

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Astralis told BLAST br0 "is unfit to play" for emergency sub; IGLs threaten to skip media day in protest

During a highly scrutinized media day on Tuesday, Russel "⁠Twistzz⁠" Van Dulken, Aleksi "⁠Aleksib⁠" Virolainen, Marco "⁠Snappi⁠" Pfeiffer, Dan "⁠apEX⁠" Madesclaire, Janusz "⁠Snax⁠" Pogorzelski and Finn "⁠karrigan⁠" Andersen took matters into their own hands by sitting out the media obligations under the pretense of an illness.

HLTV has now also received an open letter from karrigan, signed by seven of the eight captains competing at the BLAST Premier Fall Final. (Despite participating in media-day activities, Spirit in-game leader Leonid "⁠chopper⁠" Vishnyakov also signed the letter.)

In it, the players argue for tournament integrity, contrasting the current situation with two that happened at previous BLAST events in which teams were forced to use their submitted coach.

One of those included HEROIC at the BLAST Premier Fall Groups, who were denied an emergency substitution for Abdul "⁠degster⁠" Gasanov — who was sidelined by visa issues — and forced to use coach Eetu "⁠sAw⁠" Saha as the only available replacement submitted before the roster lock, according to the organization's Director of Esports.

The captains argued Casper "⁠ruggah⁠" Due should be forced to play if br0 is unfit, as he had been submitted as part of Astralis' roster in time for the deadline.

Secondly, the captains' statement takes a firm stance against "exploitation of mental health or physical health issues as a means to justify the allowance of an emergency substitute."

"We believe such matters should never be taken lightly," it says.

When asked for comment, BLAST chose not to respond at the time of publication.

You can read the open letter in full below:

There are two things we as IGLs want to address when it comes to Blast's decision regarding the allowance of Cadian to play for Astralis at Blast Fall Finals.

Firstly, integrity is at utmost importance. The roster lock rules are established for this very purpose. There have been 2 separate cases where coaches were forced to play for their respective teams: Heroic at Blast Fall Groups, and G2 at Blast Spring Finals. Emergency substitutes have previously been denied, and in this case, we believe that if br0 is in fact unfit to play, Astralis coach Ruggah would have to step in and play.

The results at Blast Fall Finals have a significant impact on the RMR Rankings, as well as a significant impact on the teams that are currently fighting for crucial points to qualify for Blast World Finals.

The second aspect we wish to address is our firm stance against the exploitation of mental health or physical health issues as a means to justify the allowance of an emergency substitute. We believe that such matters should never be taken lightly. In the event that a player faces an emergency in the future, it is essential to respect their privacy and extend our wishes for a speedy recovery to them.

We are not requesting evidence of br0’s situation, and we extend our best wishes and respect to him, if an emergency is indeed the case. As previously mentioned, rules are rules, and according to the precedent set by Blast stating that if no substitutes are added prior to the event, the coach would be the primary substitute.

Given the circumstances, we believe that Ruggah should serve as a substitute, and permitted to play, if he is in good health and fit to do so.

Finally, if Astralis were to receive a penalty or sanction, we advocate that any fine imposed should be going towards a mental health charity donation.

Sincerely,
karrigan, apex, snappi, aleksib, twistzz, snax, chopper