Flash retires from competitive Starcraft

If you’ve ever followed Starcraft, for even the briefest of time in its glory days, you will have definitely heard the name “Flash” spoken in high regard. Lee “Flash” Young-Yo announced that he would be retiring from competitive Starcrat II after 8 years on the roster of one of Korea’s best teams, KT Rolster. At the age of 23, Young-Ho leaves the scene as one of the most decorated Starcraft players ever, and arguably the best of all time.

A Flash Back

Young-Ho made his debut into Starcraft: Brood War in 2007 when he became the youngest professional gamer to be televised at the age of 14. At the age of 15 he won the 2008 Bacchus OSL defeating Stork 3-0 in the finals. This is when the name Flash became feared among the highest of professional Starcraft circles.

His most notable feat during his career was in 2010 when he made eight Grand Finals throughout the year, winning five of them, earning the simple nickname “God” from fans in Korea. He also holds the record for qualifying for the most tournaments in his eight year career, as well as the KeSPA (Korean eSports Association) record for holding the number one spot on the leaderboards for most of 2010, and again between July 2011 and July 2012.

Flash mained Terran throughout his career, throughout Wings of Liberty and Heart of The Swarm. In a final interview with Korean eSports magazine PGR21, Flash said the following about his successful career:

“As a pro gamer, I’ve got so much more than I deserve. It`s been a long 8 years, and I won`t forget the love that my fans gave me. From now on, I`d like to travel or rest a while, thinking about the future. However I would say I won`t put down my keyboard and mouse.”

Flash plans to carry out his mandatory service in Korea, but plans to return to eSports after his service with the hopes of being a head coach of KT Rolster. His goal is to give back to the eSports community which made him who is today. During the height of Starcraft in Korea many military factions would invite professional players to their bases where they could carry out their service, while still competing in Starcraft. They even went as far as having a competitive tournament inside an Airbase hanger.

Here’s a tribute performed in honour of Lee “Flash” Young-Ho

Source: MCVUK

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Last Updated: December 2, 2015