Rarely, in the short history of the French league League of Legends, no player had such a remarkable debut as Vladimiros “Vladi” Kortidis. The Greek had the difficult task of succeeding, within the Carmine Corp academy, Lucas “Sekan” Fayard, who left to take the club to the European level? It took him a week to convince the world by winning two MVPs. Championship.
Since then, the excitement surrounding Vladi has rarely subsided. The Mid laner Vasant led his team to second place in the regular season of the division and will play BDS Academy this Wednesday (6pm) for a spot in the play-off final. Above all, his accomplishments have given him the opportunity to be this.
Fast training this summer
When he entertains at the KC premises in early March, Vladi is as unsteady as he appears during post-match interviews, often slouching in his chair. Leaning back on his file, the Greek (18 years old) with impeccable English looks wiser. In line with what is expected of such a young player, but also confident of his strengths. Of which he has only been aware for a few months but which could take him to the highest European level (LEC, European Championship) in the near future.
“Last year I was really bad at the game, He smiled. But I progressed very quickly during the offseason, in a few months. » What was then just a young prospect in the minor leagues benefited from a quick training run this winter. Responding to the invitation of his compatriot Markos “Comp” Stamkopoulos, European champion in 2022, tempted by his potential, he was able to train with famous teammates, more experienced than him: Finn “Finn” Whistle, Dogukan “113 » Balsi or legend Martin “Reckles” Larson.
“As I was doing well, they did not replace me, Vladi laughs. We were training against very good teams from the Spanish league or the French league, so that gave me confidence. We played about 50 games together and I was very confident after that that he would do well in the LFL. » His meteoric rise in this temporary team has convinced the Carmine staff in any case. “I already saw it Solo dick, where he ranked very high last year, without knowing where he came from at the time. But what caught my eye was the work he did with the LEC team of friends in particular.Rehreha confirms “Reha” Ramanana, who is the first to believe in his talent.
A unique sense of play
Although Casey was the first team coach, the Frenchman was still involved in the lengthy academy selection process. And pushed for Vladi’s profile. “He was very good mechanically but he also had something extra. There are players who are based on a way of thinking, who repeat what they have learned. This is not his case at all, he naturally has good ideas about the game, not necessarily codified. It’s the power of suggestion in actions, on maps, in objectives… I’m relieved to see it workr Because that means I didn’t just see smoke. »
“His strength is that he’s incredibly creative, he’ll find things for you, angles… you can’t explain it. It’s like asking Neymar how he dribbles. He doesn’t know, it’s instinctive.”
Wadi “Wadi” Benarbia, coach of Carmine Blue
“Reha had seen all this, Wadi “Wadi” Benarbia agrees with the Carmine Blue coach, who is now responsible for supporting him on a daily basis. The bet was to say to ourselves: He has good instincts, he clicks well, he has a good champion pool, and we will develop him. His strength is that he is incredibly creative, he will find things for you, corners… We see him in the parts where he makes us come back, he finds ideas. sides It didn’t come from anywhere. You can’t explain it. That’s like asking Neymar how he dribbles. He doesn’t know, it’s natural. » “I didn’t do that much sides That in the past, it’s something that came through my off-season training.”Supports the main interested party, who made Carmine his first choice during the transfer window.
An ambition that seemed almost pretentious, given where Vladi was a year earlier. In January 2022, the native of Kilkis, in the north of the country, had only one prospect in the Greek league, the lowest rated on the continent, and was considering taking a half-season break to find a team. His choice. “Ours Mid laner Ten days before the start of the league due to personal reasons, he had to withdraw. Vasilis remembers “TheRock7” Voltis, then head of WeLoveGaming. So I went to Vladi and told him I wanted to play with him and I could make him better. He was not very polite at the time, but I told him: “Let’s work together, we’ll make a machine out of you. »
A clear transition to adult life
Behind him, there was an explosion: the player won the title in the Greek league, then joined the natives in the Nordic league for the summer – but without leaving his family home – and was crowned once again. In August, he also played the main round of the EMEA Masters and managed to win a match at… Karmine. “We still had to teach him patience. He was very young, so impatient, he ran, Puts back The Rock7. He is not the same now, but he was already very enthusiastic, invested a lot in training. »
“I play a lot, confirms Vladi with a burst of laughter. I know many players constantly complain about the state of League of Legends, not sure why they are still playing. But for me, it’s all fun! Until I got Masters (One of the highest ranks online, which it reached in 2020), I didn’t even know pageants existed, I had no professional ambitions. I really started playing in teams for fun. »
If the fun is still there, the thirst for trophies has nevertheless come during the competitions. This year, he was forced to leave his native Greece for the first time in his life, to try a French adventure. “Before, I had my parents with me, so everything was easy, food was already prepared for me… Here, it’s not like that, but it’s not a bad thing, it makes me happy which helps me become a better person. is, living on my own, That puts it into perspective. Honestly, I don’t even know how to make an egg, I’m a bit useless. But I am gaining confidence, even though it was difficult at first. It is like military service. Well, lighten up…”
The potential is yet to be determined
For now, studying hard has had little effect on his integration into the group, where his talkative personality is appreciated by everyone. “Our main focus right now is to get him to be a good companion, to speak well, to pay attention to how he expresses himself, Nuance is all over the place. Sometimes he is stubborn about certain things, he needs to understand what he is doing. » But the collective admonitions apply rather well, as shown by his team’s record (13 wins to 5 losses) since the start of the season.
Full of certainties from the regular season, the Greeks now approach difficult matches with desire. “We can win both the LFL split and the EMEA Masters (Second European level) »Assures, when asked about his intentions, he already has an idea “Get to the LEC next year”. “He could be the next Caps (Rasmus Winther, the best European player in history), assures TheRock7, is not surprised by the confidence of his former protégé. Many players do not dare to test themselves against the best. But Vladi is of this caliber. » While it might be a little early to be sure, the clash against BDS Academy is a great opportunity to show…
