Photo: LoL Esports
It's hard to miss the news: Russia and Ukraine have gone to war. The international community reacted and many personalities shared their distress on the networks. The world of esports has not remained insensitive either and several organizations have shown their support for the Ukrainian people (G2, Fnatic, Astralis, Faze Clan...).
An LEC player also wanted to talk about the current situation. He is not the best known, but his words are all the more important as he is in a rather special situation due to his Russian nationality. This is the Astralis' jungler, Zanzarah.
Strong words for a Russian citizen
It's unclear how Zanzarah will manage to handle the situation. This weekend Astralis are scheduled to play two LEC games against Team BDS and SK Gaming, but we imagine their jungler will have his mind elsewhere. While Vladimir Putin began military operations on Ukrainian soil, putting Europe and more generally the world into crisis, the jungler spoke out against war. It may be a detail for you, but it's still a statement that symbolically means a lot for a Russian citizen. He underlined that like "the majority of the Russian people", he stands against this war. By using the hashtags #WeStandForPeace and #Ukraine, we hope he won't have too many problems... A brave move and we hope that Riot Games will make sure to grant him permanent protection in the Berlin studios in case something goes wrong. As a reminder, Vladimir Putin nevertheless indicated that each person who would get in his way would be exposed to consequences.
No need to remind you but we will do it anyway: Zanzarah is Russian but he does not represent the political power in place. You can send him support, not any kind of hate.