Steven R. November 13, 2020
One of Dota 2’s biggest names is set to make his long-awaited return.
Kuro “KuroKy” Salehi Takhasomi will be competing for Team Nigma in EPIC League. This ends a prolonged layoff for the team, which has seen coach Roman "rmN-" Paley act as a stand-in for KuroKy. KuroKy also finally updated fans regarding why he has been away from competition for so long.
“I haven’t been playing with the team the past few months...To give an update of what’s going on with me personally, I’ve been struggling with some issues in my hands and arms. I’ve had issues for a couple of years now... I never really took proper breaks. The current situation gave me the opportunity to slow down and take good care of myself,” KuroKy said.
With those injuries hopefully a thing of the past, this allows KuroKy to return for competition in the EPIC League, a $500,000 online league hosted by the organizer behind the Epicenter event series. Team Nigma is set to debut in the event on November 14 with a best-of-three series against mudgolems, followed by a showdown with OG the next day.
KuroKy is not alone in dealing with esports injury
While esports doesn’t result in injury in the way traditional sports such as football and hockey do, competitors can still face serious issues when it comes to their health. There have been a few notable examples of this, particularly when it comes to veteran PC players.
The biggest esports name to suffer from a serious injury is Dota 2’s Clinton “Fear” Loomis. During his extended tenure with Evil Geniuses, Fear was forced out of the team’s The International 2014 roster due to a wrist injury. This issue lingered for a long while and played a factor in him taking a season off in 2016. He returned in 2017 and has largely been active since, though he is currently on an indefinite leave.
In League of Legends, veteran Jian "Uzi" Zi-Hao spent some time on the bench before retiring from the Royal Never Give Up roster due to a debilitating arm injury. He also suffered from diabetes caused by chronic stress. Uzi explained in an interview that an average pro player's peak is just two years, but can vary based on how much players can endure.
KuroKy did not give specifics on his injury but he likely will be able to pick up right where he left off. Fans of the former champion can keep an eye on his EPIC League performance to see how he fares.