Russian President Vladimir Putin Congratulates Team Spirit on Winning Dota 2’s TI10
The recent conclusion of Dota 2’s The International 10 (TI10) has many fans and spectators in a recent uproar over its results. Many watching and analyzing the event had Chinese team PSG.LGD pegged as the tournament favorites, citing their first place finish at this year’s AniMajor, as well as top three results at events like ESL One Fall 2021 and the OGA Dota PIT Invitational. However, PSG.LGD’s chances at winning TI10 were undermined by an unlikely rabble of Russian rookies whose organization had previously only made a grand total of around $600,000 in their six-year history as a professional Dota 2 organization.
Now, it seems like Team Spirit not only has the attention of the Dota 2 community but of Russia’s government as well, as Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated the team in an official letter that was released today from the Kremlin for their TI10 win.
Vladimir Putin Offers Congratulations to Team Spirit’s Dota 2 Team
Putin’s letter to Team Spirit congratulated their efforts at TI10 and made particular note of how Russian esports players are consistently a grade above the rest. The following is a translation of Putin’s letter coming out of the Kremlin:
A note from Vladimir Putin congratulating Team Spirit on their TI win. https://t.co/2eL1p1nAoy pic.twitter.com/yL7gOWGqt5
— Wykrhm Reddy (@wykrhm) October 18, 2021
Dear friends!
Congratulations on your well-deserved victory at The International 2021 – Dota 2 World Championship. For the first time in history, the Russian team of Team Spirit won this prestigious competition. Well done!
On the way to the final, you demonstrated outstanding leadership qualities and solidarity, and in the decisive duel, which became a real test of skill and character, you managed to concentrate and seize the initiative from strong opponents at the most crucial moment. Team Spirit has proven in practice that our esports athletes are always goal-oriented and capable of conquering any and all challenges.
I wish you continued success and all the best.
Vladimir Putin
Putin’s letter to Team Spirit is not the first time the Russian government has acknowledged esports. In fact, esports is recognized as a professional sport in Russian, thanks to this 2016 order by the Ministry of Sports in the Russian Federation. With Team Spirit’s recent performance at TI10, it’s likely they could also win domestic awards in Russia for their athleticism and stellar representation of Russian esports. The team was also greeted by this animated banner at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow, showing that many Russian companies and organizations are celebrating the recent victory of their countrymen at TI10, which bodes well for Russia’s Dota 2 scene.
Team Spirit’s win at TI10 will be the first time a Russian organization has won The International for Dota 2. The CIS region now has two TI champions, with NAVI having won the The International back in 2011 and Team Spirit having won this year’s TI10.
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