Champions have their time in the sun. They challenge, conquer and become decorated in their numerous victories. Sometimes these champions decline and get knocked off by the new kid on the block, only left to reminisce about what once was. Yet others lose the fire after they’ve lost their place on top. But the true legends continue to fight tooth and nail for greatness. Hai is one of those legends, and he continues to fight for his career and Flyquest as a champion.

Hai and Flyquest proved the naysayers wrong © Riot Games

Defying expectations

Hai initially retired in 2015 after voluntarily stepping down from Cloud9, acknowledging that he was “past his prime,” but still came back and saved C9 a few times before settling down again in 2016. Even with those days behind him, he still seeks victory on Flyquest. Along with former Cloud9 champions, LemonNation and Balls, he brought a new team into the LCS and hotly contested the competition early in Spring. Flyquest stumbled at the end, but still made it through the playoffs and was just one game short of third place after a 3-2 loss to Phoenix1. Third place is usually seen as a mere consolation prize, but even missing that mark was too much for Hai.

“Personally, I am pretty bitter, I am pretty mad, I’m frustrated that we didn’t win and I’m frustrated that I didn’t play as well as I should have. So ... while we didn’t win, on the bright side, we did place fourth, and that’s a lot better than every team under us. Especially since no one expected anything out of us. So I’m happy about that, and that’s the silver lining.”

Flyquest was seen by the community as a band of washed up players and rejects, destined for relegations, but a team with Hai at the helm shouldn’t have been dismissed so easily. There were times in the past when Hai was clearly outmatched by some of the elite mids in the world and had his champion pool pinched, but on his home turf, he’s as solid as ever. Hai may not have won this time, but that’s not going to stop him from chasing glory.

Hai can still keep up with the youngsters © Riot Games

Longevity

Pro gamers are quickly called to be ousted once their performance takes a dip, especially veterans, and Hai was no exception. In such a young landscape, it’s not uncommon to see age cited as a reason for a player’s nose dive. People talk about mechanics degrading or slower reaction times, but Hai sees the effect of age differently.

“As you get older, you don’t necessarily lose mechanics. I think the reason a lot of young players have strong mechanics is they have nothing to do most of the time besides high school and then playing League of Legends 24/7. When I was in college and high school, I played video games all day, but now that I’m older I have more responsibilities. Chores, utilities, taxes, driving around, grocery shopping, cooking, ‘cause I live on my own.”

However, there’s still potential for longer careers in esports as the scene develops.

“If I had just as much time to play as they do to play, I don’t think there’s any difference between a 17-year-old and a 25-year-old playing. If you were starting to lose mechanics, that wouldn’t make sense. If you look at NBA and football, there are people who are 40 who are still playing at a top tier level. I definitely think that’s applicable to esports as well. If you can just play League and that is your future, I think you’ll be OK.”

Moon and Altec were key to Flyquest's success © Riot Games

Changing things up

Hai’s determination and veteran leadership were at the head of Flyquest, but it’s hard to imagine the team succeeding without its new blood this spring. Hai is a legendary shotcaller , but as teams across the world begin to move toward democratic shotcalling, it’s become more about teaching newer players as opposed to dictating to them.

“I think since Moon has joined the team, we have been changing the dynamic we have on our team. Before, in the past, I’ve always been something like 50-75 percent of the voice on our team during a game. Nowadays, I’m like 30-50 percent, sometimes even less. I like that because it’s making everyone grow as a player and as a person, to learn how to communicate effectively, to learn how to think properly, to know when to do what and where to do what.”

Not only does it benefit newer players and the communication in the team, but it frees up some breathing room for Hai. He can’t be a one-man shotcalling machine forever if Flyquest really wants to soar.

“It’s going in for the long haul. If we wanted immediate results, we’d just keep doing what we were doing in the past. But I like moving through this new system because it allows me to improve as well. I no longer have to think for a lot of players on the team and it’s great, because I can think more for myself and what I want to do. It’s great!”

Hai looks toward the fans © Riot Games

Future of Flyquest

Flyquest may have achieved fourth place, but Spring was the split to build as the team moved away from dictative shotcalling. “Getting fourth place while switching to a new system of how to approach the game is honestly really amazing for what we are doing. There are teams like CLG who went to MSI the previous year and did really well there, but now they still have the same roster doing the same things. We’re doing something new with a different team and we’re still doing very well.”

As Flyquest develops strength as a brand and Hai continues to play like the champion he was on C9, he hopes that will be enough for the fans.