Chinese LoL roster for Asia Games 2023 confirmed
The League of Legends roster representing China at the 2023 Hangzhou Asia Games has been finalized and it features some notable players.
The Chinese Olympic association is recruiting the League of Legends Avengers squad for the 2023 Hangzhou Asia Games. Three members of the 2020 TES roster made the final cut, alongside 3 members of the 2021 EDG squad that won the World Championship. With championship experience at all 3 levels of competition and other-wordly talent, can the Chinese national LoL team proove they are the best in the world?
LoL Esports are an Olympic sport at Paris 2024 Summer Olympics
As of December 18, 2020, Esports is officially recognized as an Olympic competition. With Esports and Breakdancing debuting at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics, it’s time to go through the qualifications. That is the purpose of the 2023 Hangzhou Asia Games, which will hand out medals in 8 esports titles. Those are Arena of Valor, Dota 2, Dream of the Three Kingdoms 2, FIFA, Hearthstone, League of Legends, PUBG Mobile, and Street Fighter V.
When it comes to competitive League of Legends, this sets us up for a clash of titans. The rivalry between the Chinese and Korean representatives now goes beyond team accomplishments. Chinese League of Legends teams have won 4 of the last 5 International League of Legends tournaments. And they’ve beaten mostly Korean teams to achieve that success.
But the 2023 Hangzhou Asia Games go beyond bragging rights and defending the pride of the nation. For the Korean representatives, winning at this Olympic event would exempt them from the mandatory military service South Korea has instituted.
2023 Hangzhou Asia Games dates announced
In late 2022 it was announced that the 2023 Hangzhou Asia Games were being rescheduled for 2023, running from September 23rd to October 8th. While this makes this overlap with the regular League of Legends World Championship schedule on the side of Riot Games, we have no doubts that the event will be pushed back. Since then, every Asian country has been evaluating its potential rosters in each of these eight esports titles in order to secure the best possible results.
We’ve already mentioned what’s at stake for the Korean representatives. But the Chinese LoL roster also has the weight of a massive nation on its shoulders. With their recent dominance on the international stage, it’s no wonder they enter the tournaments as favorites. And with so many great players to choose from in the most competitive League of Legends scene, the Chinese roster is not short on talent.
Based on the performance on international stages, domestic league matches, and comprehensive professional quality, after discussion and review, a list of Chinese National Esports Training Teams for Hangzhou Asian Games – League of Legends is recommended as follows.
— LPL (@lplenglish) May 5, 2023
Booming… pic.twitter.com/4Lj90Gka8Y
The Chinese Olympic Association organized a training camp composed of the top performers in each role. Those ended up being:
- Coach: KenZhu, Arron, Maokai
- Top laners: 369, Breathe, Bin, Shanji, Ale
- Junglers: Tian, Aki, Xun, Wei, Jiejie
- Mid laners: Creme, Xiaohu, Yagao, Knight
- Bot laners: GALA, Lwx, Light, JackeyLove, Elk
- Supports: Hang, Crisp, MISSING, ON, Ming, Meiko
Chinese LoL Roster For 2023 Hangzhou Asia Games Revealed
This training camp was conducted between the 2023 LPL Spring and Summer Splits, with the roster being finalized before the start of June. This is the team they chose to represent Chinese League of Legends and some fans are understandably upset.
- Top lane: JDG 369, BLG Bin (as a substitute)
- Jungle: EDG Jiejie
- Mid lane: JDG Knight
- Bot lane: TES JackeyLove
- Support: EDG Meiko
- Coach: EDG KenZhu
On paper, this lineup looks formidable. The JDG solo laners in top laner JDG 369 and mid laner JDG Knight, have been on a tear recently. They just won the 2023 LoL Esports MSI trophy, and are back in the number 1 spot during the 2023 LPL Summer Split with an 8-1 record.
Many would argue that they are the best in the world in their role, and the reason Korean teams couldn’t reach the MSI finals. BLG Bin who will serve as the substitute for this roster also fits the same criteria. But the rest of the roster is where questions start to arise.
Reaction and analysis to Chinese LoL Roster For 2023 Hangzhou Asia Games
Coach KenZhu has been the most decorated Chinese League of Legends coach in recent years. He has achieved tremendous success both domestically and on the international stage. Winning the 2021 World Championship as an assistant coach to Maokai wasn’t enough of a challenge. So he went to RNG and won the following 2022 LPL Spring Split and the 2022 MSI title.
In 2023 he was back as the head coach of EDG, hiring his former mentor in coach Maokai, and bringing EDG to a top 3 finish in the 2023 LPL Spring Split. But then the EDG Leave situation happened and EDG is now currently in tenth place. Many Chinese fans argue that having jungler EDG Jiejie and support EDG Meiko is not fair given their recent form. They accuse the coach of sabotaging their nation’s chances against the Korean squad due to nepotism, by picking his team’s players.
Although most of the community can pinpoint statistics showing RNG Wei and BLG Xun as being better junglers than EDG Jiejie, nothing can replace the connection a coach can have with his jungler. The same goes for EDG Meiko. BLG On might have a better split statically, but Meiko is an LPL legend with 9 years of experience.
In competitive League of Legends, the jungle and support roles work hand in hand to control the map. From the tempo of the game, to shot calling and executing the coach’s game plan, these roles are intertwined. And this trio of coach KenZhu, jungler Jiejie, and support Meiko have won everything they can together, proving they are a well-oiled machine in high-pressure situations.
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