Interview with BlinG: "I won't be satisfied with anything less than first place"

This past weekend I got the chance to speak with Samayan 'BlinG' Kay again to get his thoughts about the goings on in the UK. With i45 this weekend and the Blizzard UK Qualifiers ongoing, see what BlinG has to say about everything in the interview below!

 

You recently competed in your first series of events in America, how did you find them compared to the UK and Europe events you've previously competed in?

BlinG: Obviously the competition was much harder over there as there were more Koreans that I could count! But it was really fun nonetheless and I had an amazing time. I didn't place as well as I would've liked to in all of the events but that just came down to me not being as practised as I would've liked to be, but the overall atmosphere of the events made it worthwhile. The fans were also incredibly enthusiastic which made everything much more enjoyable.

 

Out of the two events, Lonestar Clash and MLG, which did you prefer?

BlinG:I enjoyed both as much as each other for various reasons. At Lonestar it was much smaller than MLG but they took care of the players better than I could've imagined. They supplied everything we needed and everything we asked for, it was really awesome how well they done everything also especially considering it was their first major event. MLG was amazing purely because of all of the fans and the atmosphere as a whole. Obviously for the level of competition, MLG was much higher which made the tournament a lot more intense than Lonestar which also made the event more exciting.

You've been playing in the ESL UK Open tournaments recently, how has your performance in the UK Open affected your practice for this weekends I-series event, and how do you feel going in to i45 knowing you've beaten all of the major contenders?

BlinG: It hasn't affected my practice at all. I've been playing in them just to relax and have some fun messing around when I'm not in the mood to practice properly and also I try to help the UK community so I feel this helps in doing so. I'm looking forward to i45. It's been a while since I've met up with all the UK players so it will be good to catch up with them all. As for the tournament, I'd say I'm as confident as I can be, I expect to win and won't be satisfied with anything less than first place.

 

Is there anyone particularly in the UK scene right now that you think has the potential to go on and really contend for the top spot at the iseries events this year?

BlinG: JonnyRecco seems to be doing pretty well lately, if I had to say anyone new then it would be him, other than that, Lau will be up there I'm sure.

 

What are your feelings on Starcraft 2 not being the main game for this iseries event, and do you see it as a step back for the community that IPL hasn't returned?

BlinG: I didn't realise it wasn't if I'm honest. But seeing as you said that, I don't think it will affect anything. As for IPL not returning, we can't really expect them to as they have no reason to, but I feel it is a step back for the UK scene as it seemed like things were just kicking off with international players coming to the UK to compete and now it's just back to the UK guys again, which is a shame but there's not much you can do about it.

 

With the Blizzard UK National Championships playing in June, are you expecting the same result there as you are at iseries, and how have the qualifiers been so far for you?

BlinG: Of course, and if I don't, I won't be satisfied like I said before. There's only been one qualifier so far and I didn't realise at the time that the winner would get 1st seed going into the Finals in London, so I was playing around having fun and ended up losing in the semi finals 1-2, the next qualifier is tomorrow and I'll be sure to try my best but regardless of what seed I get at the finals in London, it won't stop me from taking first place.

 

I heard a rumour that you were saying you want the sixteenth seed to take out Recco in the finals, is there a rivalry growing there between the two of you?

BlinG: No, that's not true. I said I wanted to get 16th seed so I could play the guy that I lost to in the semi finals as he went on to win the whole thing. When it was 1-1 I wanted to make sure I was going to win so I played standard and he actually went and cheesed me unexpectedly, so I want my revenge!

 

A few months ago, Total Biscuit announced that he would become a personal sponsor for you, how has that affected your career since the announcement?

BlinG: Well now that I've got his added support, I can actually afford to move out and get a place with good internet and good connections, so within the next 2 months I'll be able to start streaming and practising how I'd like to as at the moment my practice is pretty limited due to my connection, so I'm very grateful for his support and a massive thanks to him!

Are there any plans to set up a house for UK players, or would you rather live away from other pro-gamers?

BlinG: Nope no plans, but I'd rather live away from pro-gamers if I'm honest as I still like to live a life outside of Starcraft!

 

Will you be travelling to MLG in Anaheim in June? If so, how does the speculation of the Korean Brood War pro gamers attending MLG make you feel?

BlinG: Hopefully yeah, we'll see. And I don't really know anything about the Brood War players but it will be fun to see how they do.. see if they're what they're made out to be and all that jazz!

 

Finally, is there anything you'd like to say to your fans or sponsors?

BlinG: Thanks, thanks and thanks, not much more I can say!

 

BlinG went on to qualify for the UK National Finals in June, by defeating Phamut 3-0 in the finals of the UK Qualifiers #2 this past Sunday. To catch all the action from this weekends i45 event live from Telford, head to iseries.multiplay.co.uk. Follow Team Dignitas, BlinG and myself on twitter, and to get all the latest Team Dignitas news keep visiting www.team-dignitas.net.