Cloud9 Counter-Strike player Ryan “Freakazoid” Abadir has been fined a month’s salary and will be made to attend an anti bullying seminar after the player exchanged verbal jabs with star Team Liquid star player Aleksandr “S1mple” Kostylev. The incident was caught on stream and has caused outrage within the community.
During the five-minute conversation between the two, the argument escalated from remarks about each other’s performance in-game, to personal attacks. “Do you even have real life friends? I bet you don’t” Abadir says. The exchange continues for a few minutes, with Abadir continuing to lay on the insults.
“Do you have any balls?”
“Man have you seen your aim? your aim sucks dick.”
“Now I know why everybody hates you.”
Kostylev, who believed he was talking to Jake “Stewie2K” Yip (Abadir was apparently using his computer), countered with insults about Cloud9’s recent performances.
In a statement on the team’s website, Abadir said he believed his behavior was “unacceptable” and that he “expected better from himself.”
“I have failed my community, teammates, and organization,” he said.
In the statement, Cloud9’s manager, Tres “Stunna” Saranthus, also commented on the incident, saying “friendly trash talk is one thing, but when personal attacks begin, a line has been crossed.”
For his part, Kostylev said he accepted the apology in a statement on Liquid’s website. “I know that I wasn’t right also in the various situations with how I behaved,” he said.
Abadir has been fined one month salary by the team, with 50 percent going to the Born This Way foundation, a charity focusing on anti-bullying, and another 50 percent going to PACER’s National Bullying Prevention Centre. On top of the fine, Abadir will attend an anti-bullying seminar in Los Angeles.
Photo by Adela Sznajder via DreamHack/Flickr (All rights reserved, used with permission)
