This is Niche Culture. In this column, we regularly cover anime, geek culture, and things related to video games. Please leave feedback and let us know if there’s something you want us to cover!

Maria “Remilia” Creveling, the first woman to participate in the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS), has died in her sleep at the age of 24.

Under the summoner name Remilia, Maria Creveling competed in the LCS on team Renegades. This group began as an unnamed challenger team, but worked their way through the League of Legends Challenger Series to eventually secure a spot in the LCS.

Remilia stepped down from the team in 2016, before moving on to Kaos Latin Gamers under the new name Sakuya. Unfortunately, she suffered from paralyzed vocal cords, and had to resign to seek treatment in the US.

The news came from her friend and eSports journalist Richard Lewis, via his Twitter. He confirmed that Creveling had passed away on December 27th of this year.

“It is with great sadness that I inform you that my best friend Maria Creveling passed away peacefully in her sleep yesterday. Her absence will leave a void that can never be filled. She would not have wanted any lengthy statements or grand eulogies. Despite having fans all over the world she was never one who craved the spotlight. My only request is that anyone wanting to pay tribute reach out to ensure that it is done in a manner that respects her wishes.”

Her boyfriend also tweeted about her death.

My girlfriend Maria died last night, she wouldn’t want any lengthy public statement, so all I’ll say is the 4 months I knew her were the best of both our lives and although she deserved so much more, it was a privilege to know her for the short time I did. RIP Maria, I love you.

Up until her passing, Creveling had been streaming regularly, and even competing in the odd event. It seemed as if she had to deal with a fair amount of pushback from fans, judging by a Reddit post she made after winning the Challenger Series. The original post was deleted, but a blurb from it was retained here (via Kotaku).

“In the end though the competition doesn’t mean much to me. i don’t care to be the best in the world. i love playing with a team and accomplishing stuff and being recognized for it. when i set out initially, i wanted to be the first girl in LCS. that was what motivated me. that dream i had i accomplished and yet it is being challenged in such a heartless way. i really honestly truly hate so many people. if you want my honesty, everyone that tries to take away from what i accomplished, well i will always spite them. i’m always extremely salty when dealing with fans on mediums like twitter and reddit, i met some really cool fans in person at the studio for sure. i just want it to be known that i accomplished my goal for real, and i accomplished it for me, my teammates, and girls in esports. that’s it. no one else. don’t fucking put me on some lgbt agenda or some bullshit and bring that up. that’s not me, i don’t believe in that. i don’t want messages acknowledging that part of my life, sorry.”

To Maria’s friends and family, we offer our sincere condolences.